My Captain
by fictionprincess08
Summary: Steve spent 70 years frozen in ice, and awoke to find the woman he loved aged and sick with Alzheimer's. The only person he knew from his old life was not who she used to be, but it was because of her that he met Peggy's only granddaughter Chris Carter.
1. Chapter 1

Chris Carter was on her way to her grandmother's.  
Since her parents died, ten years ago, she's been taking care of her. She doesn't remember much these days with her Alzheimer. Chris goes over to her house every day after work and make her some dinner and make sure she is well taken care of.  
Chris walked into the house and heard her grandmother talking to someone.  
"Steve, you're back." She said happily.  
"I couldn't leave my best girl." Steve said.  
"Grandma." Chris said walking in.  
"Oh, Christine. This is Steve."  
Steve stood up and shook her hand.  
"Wow, you look just like your grandmother." Steve said to Chris.  
"I get that a lot." Chris said smiling.  
Chris leaned down and kissed her grandma's head.  
"Do you need anything?" Chris asked.  
"No, dear." Peggy said smiling.  
"Then, why don't you get some sleep."  
She nodded and Steve and Chris walked out. Chris turned off the light and closed the door behind her. They sat on the couch in the living room and Chris let out a small laugh.  
"What's so funny?" Steve asked giving her a confused smile.  
"Captain America is sitting in my grandmother's house. All this time I thought she was making up stories about how you and her, but here you are." Chris said smiling.  
"She told you about me?"  
"She has a few stories. I've heard them each a dozen times."  
"Like what?"  
"Like, how before the serum you were 5'4", scrawny and weak. I'm guessing you weren't a real lady killer back then?"  
"Girls do tend to go for a man that's taller than them." Steve said, and they laughed.  
"I'm guessing you're batting girls off of you now."  
"I guess." He shrugged.  
"I bet you have a girl waiting for you to come home." Chris said hoping his answer was no.  
"No. I haven't really found anybody that can quite hold up to how amazing your grandmother was, but I think I just found someone." Steve smiled.  
"Oh, what's she like?"  
"I don't really know. Maybe I can get to know her over dinner?"  
"Sure." Chris said trying to hide the blush that was crawling up her cheeks.  
"Could we go now?" He asked.  
"Of course, let me grab my coat." She said getting up "You know, for someone who hasn't asked out a girl in a while, that was really smooth."  
"Thanks." He laughed. "Who's medals?" He asked and Chris turned to see him staring at the box with the few medals in it.  
"Oh, those are mine." She said walking over to him.  
"You served?"  
"Six years in Iraq."  
"There's a purple heart." He said pointing to it.  
"That's how I got out. Can't serve anymore." She said putting on her coat.  
"What happened?"  
"Where should we go for dinner?" Chris asked changing the subject.  
"There's that Italian place around the corner." Steve said catching the hint.  
"Sounds great."  
They were sat at a table and Steve ordered them some wine.  
The entire time they just talked about themselves trying to get to know each other.  
Chris ordered some pasta dish and Steve ordered the Chicken Bolognaise. His came with spaghetti. Being Italian Chris just had to try the marinara. She took a noodle and tried to eat this long strand. She started moving towards the bowl and realized she was face to face with Steve who had the other end of the noodle. Their eyes got really big and Chris bit off so he could have the rest.  
"Sorry." He said awkwardly.  
"No, it was your spaghetti. I'm sorry." Chris said as her face started to heat up.  
They finished eating and Steve leaned forward on his elbows.  
"I have to know why you got the purple heart." Steve said looking at her seriously.  
"Cards up?"  
"Cards up."  
"Okay." She sighed.  
Steve shifted a little and rested his chin on his hands.  
"We were ambushed in Iraq. They killed the four men I was with but being the commanding officer, they held me captive and tortured me. They would cut me, and water board me. I never told them anything. I would never turn on my own country or endanger my friends in the military. After a week they were fed up with me. They took me into the desert and shot me in the chest. Obviously, they missed my heart. I laid there in the sand as my wound bled out. I don't really know how long I was lying there, but sooner or later a truck drove by. They were taking supplies to camp and saw me lying there. They took me back to base. They bandaged me up and flew me to the closest hospital. They had to perform surgery to remove the bullet. They fixed me up, gave me a purple heart and sent me home."  
"Wow." Steve said.  
"Yeah."  
"That must have been terrible."  
"Yeah." Was all she could say, and with that the conversation was over.  
Steve paid for dinner, although Chris told him she would take her half. He refused.  
They walked out and stood in front of the restaurant.  
"Well, this was fun. Except for my depressing story."  
"Not even, it's incredible that you lived."  
"I'm just lucky he was a bad shot." Chris said smiling.  
They stood there awkwardly for a second until Chris broke the silence.  
"Well, goodnight." She said.  
"Goodnight." He replied.  
Neither of them moved. They still stood there staring at each other. It was only a few second and Steve crashed his lips onto hers.

They were lying in his bed. Chris was lying on her stomach as he ran his fingers over the scars on her upper arms and back.  
"They did quite the damage." Steve said sadly.  
"We all go through something." Chris said.  
"Yeah, but not like you did."  
"You were frozen in a block of ice for 60 years. I think that's pretty close."  
"It's okay to feel sorry for yourself."  
"I don't like to think about it. I can't go swimming. I can't take a bath. Some days even showers are hard. It installed a fear of drowning."  
"It's understandable."  
"I'm so sorry. We only met today and you already know more about me than anyone."  
"I'm okay with that." Steve said smiling.  
Chris smiled back.  
"Okay," Chris said flipping onto her side and holding her head up with her hand to mirror Steve. "Cards up. Was that the first time you've... yeah... since 1944?" Chris asked.  
"That bad?"  
"No, I was just wondering." She said.  
"Oh." He said sadly.  
"It was enjoyable, Steve." She smiled.  
"Oh." He said again with a blush.  
Chris giggled and he blushed harder. Then his face turned serious as he looked at her chest. The sheet was pulled up, but he could see the scar on her chest from where she had been shot.  
Steve reached his hand out and placed it over the scar. Three inches to the left of her heart. She had been lucky, and she knew that.  
"What?" Chris asked.  
"Just think how close you were to death."  
"I know."  
They eventually fell asleep. But not for long because Chris had to go to work.  
Chris was running around the room grabbing her clothes off the ground. Steve had on some jeans and a tee shirt.  
"Where do you work?" Steve asked as he helped her zip up the dress she had been wearing.  
"Not far from you. But sometimes really far from you." Chris said smiling.  
"That made no sense."  
"Just because I was shot doesn't mean I chose to stay away from danger. With my knowledge of languages and weapons SHIELD had me in the field in no time. My family tree may have helped as well."  
"You work at SHIELD, and I've never seen you."  
"We work in two different groups. If it wasn't for Grandma we may never have met."  
"I'm glad we did." Steve smiled.  
"Me too." Chris said kissing him.


	2. Chapter 2

Since Steve and Chris started dating a year ago they've been on a few missions together. Always at Steve's request.  
They are very good about seeing Chris's grandmother. She's always happy to see that they are together, but then a few minutes later she forgets.  
With their similar schedules they decided to move in together and save money. Chris was almost always at Steve's anyways.  
Steve is such a romantic, although what else should Chris expect from a guy who used to be 5'4" and grew up in the thirties. He makes sure they have a date night once a week.  
Tonight he decided to cook Chris dinner. He's supposed to have it all ready when she gets home from her grandmothers.  
When Chris walked into their apartment all the lights were off.  
"Steve?" She said as she walked in. She turned on the lights and put her hand on her gun. When she walked into the kitchen there was a bouquet of flowers on the table with a note.

On the roof.  
-Steve

Chris smiled and walked out and up to the roof. Steve was standing on the edge looking out at the city with a beer in his hand. She walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist.  
"It's a beautiful night." Chris smiled.  
"That it is." Steve said and pulled one of her hands up to his lips. He turned around and Chris looked next to him to see a table for two set up. There were candles all around the table.  
"Wow." Chris said quietly.  
"It's over kill. I know" Steve said rubbing the back his neck nervously.  
"It's perfect." She smiled.  
Steve smiled back and they walked over to the table. Steve pulled out her chair for her and she laughed while she sat down.  
"My gentleman." She said.  
"Tonight I have made you three cheese tortellini with tomatoes and pancetta and a pest Alfredo sauce."  
"Sounds delicious."  
"I hope so."  
He put some on her plate and then grated some Parmesan on top before he served himself.  
He sat in his seat and waited for Chris to take a bite.  
"Is it good?" He asked.  
"It's amazing."  
Steve looked relieved.  
"Steve, it's always amazing. Why would this time be any different?"  
"It's a new Alfredo recipe."  
"It's always amazing."  
"Okay. Okay." Steve said laughing as he threw his hands up in surrender.  
They sat there talking, eating and drinking beer.  
After they were finished they took the dishes down to their apartment and washed them. They placed them in the dishwasher and grabbed another beer.  
Steve looked at Chris and smiled.  
"What?" Chris asked smiling.  
"I love you."  
"I love you too, Captain."  
Steve rolled his eyes and shook his head.  
"No 'Captain' at home, Trigger."  
"Who gave me that nickname anyways? Trigger? Sounds like tigger from Winnie the Pooh.  
Steve laughed and rested his forehead on hers.  
"You have beautiful eyes." Chris said looking up at him.  
"Me? Have you seen yours?"  
"Yes, and they don't even compare."  
"Oh yes they do. Those brown eyes that look like melted dark chocolate. All I want is to stare into them forev-." She cut him off by kissing him.  
"Just stop arguing." She smiled.

Chris was having a terrible nightmare. She was back in Iraq lying on that table being held down by three men.  
"What are the Americans planning? Why won't they leave? Where is your base?" Someone kept asking over and over.  
"Screw you. I'll never tell." She spat.  
"You will. Eventually. They all do. Give her a drink."  
Chris started screaming and trying to get out of their grip. Someone came over and put a rag over her face. The water came pouring down and she couldn't spit it out. Soon she couldn't even breathe.  
Chris shot up in bed panting. Steve was sitting up next to her looking at her worriedly.  
She got out of bed and walked over to the window. She crossed her arms and leaned against the pane.  
She felt Steve wrap his arms around her, but she didn't move.  
"Another nightmare?" Steve asked.  
"I couldn't breathe."  
"It's over now. You're safe." He said and kissed her shoulder.  
"It's not over. I see it every day. The memories are so vivid."  
"We'll get through this, but I think it's time you really talk to someone about these nightmares."  
"Can I just talk to you?"  
"Of course."  
They went back to sleep in each other's arms. The next morning Steve went out for a run and Chris stayed home. She was hopping out of the shower when her phone went off. She quickly pulled on some jeans and a navy-blue long-sleeved shirt.  
Chris hopped in the car and met Steve and Natasha at the air field. They were suited up and briefed on the way.  
"Pirates took over 93 minutes ago." Rumlow said.  
"Demands?" Chris asked.  
"1.5 billion."  
"Why so steep?" Steve asked.  
"It's SHIELD's."  
"It's not off course. It's trespassing." Steve said.  
"I'm sure there's a good reason." Natasha said.  
"How many pirates?" Steve asked.  
"Twenty-five. They're led by this guy." Rumlow said pulling up a picture on the big screen.  
"George Bartoc. He's ex DGSE action division. He's on the top of Interpol's Red Notice. He's got a rep for killing anyone he sees fit." Chris said cracking her knuckles.  
"Hostages?" Steve asked.  
"All techs except for one. They're being held in the galley." Rumlow said.  
"Alright, Chris and I will sweep the deck to find Bartoc. Natasha, kill the engines and wait for further instructions. Rumlow, find the hostages and get them out." Steve said to everyone.  
"You heard the Cap. Suit up." Rumlow instructed the rest of the men.  
They walked back and Chris grabbed some more mags, placing them on her belt.  
Steve tested our radios and Chris replied.  
"So, you know Bartoc?" Steve asked Chris.  
"What do you mean?" She asked trying to brush him off.  
"Come on, Chris. I know you." Steve said grabbing her shoulders and making her look at him.  
"It doesn't matter."  
"I love you."  
"I love you too." She replied and he kissed her forehead.  
"Approaching the drop zone." The pilot said over the radio.  
Steve opened the hanger door and looked at Chris. He grabbed her hand and jumped, pulling her with him towards the water. He held her closed as they hit the water. They came up and she glared at Steve.  
"What?" Steve asked.  
"After all that work I did on my hair." Chris said jokingly angry.  
"And you still look beautiful."  
The two of them climbed up the anchor's chain to the boat. Steve and Chris found pirates within seconds. They were taking them out one by one. Chris had a suppressor on her gun and Steve would just knock them out.  
"How many was that?" Steve asked after they had cleared off a section of the deck for the rest of our team to land.  
"I think twenty." Chris laughed then heard a gun cock behind her head.  
"Don't move." He said to Chris.  
He was then shot by Rumlow.  
"Thanks." Steve said to Rumlow.  
"You two seemed to be helpless without me." He said sarcastically.  
Steve and Chris broke off and found Bartoc. They waited to move until they knew everyone else was in position.  
"Targets acquired." Someone said.  
"STRIKE in position." Rumlow said.  
"Natasha, status?" Steve asked.  
There was silence over the comms.  
"Natasha?" Chris asked.  
"Hang on!" She yelled.  
After some grunts they got a response.  
"Engine room secured." She replied.  
"On my mark. One... two... three." Steve said.  
Steve and Chris made their way to the control room. Steve threw his shield through the glass and it knocked out the other guy in the control room. Steve jumped through the window and Bartoc kicked him. Chris chased Bartoc while Steve got his shield and followed.  
"Hostages in route to extraction, hostiles are still in play." Rumlow said over the comms.  
"Natasha, help Rumlow protect the hostages. Chris, where are you?" Steve asked over the comms.  
Bartoc rounded a corner and Chris followed him. He punched her as she turned the corner. She hit the wall. Bartoc went to kick her head, but she moved out of the way. He punched her again and she hit her head on a pole. When the room had stopped spinning Chris saw that Steve had kicked Bartoc down. Bartoc stood up and she ran over and pushed him through a door. She sat on his chest and punched him over and over.  
"This...is...for...Wesley!" Chris said between punches.  
Chris looked back and saw Steve standing in the doorway.  
"Well, this is awkward." Natasha said.  
They looked over and saw her standing at a computer.  
"What are you doing?" Steve asked.  
"Backing up the hard drive." She replied.  
"Rumlow needed your help. Why are you here?" Steve was not happy.  
"Completing my mission."  
"The mission was to rescue the hostages." Chris said standing next to Steve.  
"That was your mission." Natasha said and grabbed the flash drive out of the computer.  
"You just jeopardized the entire mission."  
Bartoc stood up and threw a grenade at them. Steve batted it away and they jumped through a window into the other room to escape the blast. They all sat against the wall panting.  
"That one's on me." Natasha said.  
Chris looked at her arm and saw the shard of glass protruding from her bicep. Steve looked over at her and saw it as well.  
"Chris, are you okay?" He asked.  
"Yeah." Chris responded and left it in there.  
"I'll take that one too." Natasha said.  
"Damn right." Steve said and helped Chris up.  
The three of them got to the rendezvous and were picked up. Steve sat next to Chris and looked at her arm.  
"Come on. Let me take care of that." Steve said gently.  
Chris sat there as he pulled out the huge shard. She gave a small wince and Steve looked at her.  
"I need to wrap it up."  
Chris unzipped her top and pulled it off her shoulders. She was glad she had remembered to wear her tank top underneath this time.  
Steve wrapped up her arm and gave her a small smile.  
"Good as new." Steve smiled.  
"Thanks." Chris smiled.


	3. Chapter 3

Chris and Steve got back home and Chris had to get back to work. Steve had gone to go talk to Fury. Chris was in the Insight bay helping to make sure the weapons were being treated with care while she was gone.  
She was looking around when she saw director Fury walking through the bay.  
"Director Fury." Chris said and walked over to him.  
As she got closer she saw Fury was not alone. Steve saw Chris and shock covered his face. No running now.  
"Christine Carter is our Insight weapons adviser. Although I am well aware you two are well acquainted." Fury said.  
"Why didn't you tell me?" Steve asked.  
"It was above your clearance." Chris said quietly.  
"I asked Agent Carter not to share this information with you once I caught wind of your relationship. She refused, but realized you weren't ready for this." Fury explained.  
"I'm sorry." She said and walked away.  
Chris left SHIELD and went back to their apartment. Steve was pulling up on his bike at the same time as she was. She got out of her car and walked over to him.  
"You still mad at me?" Chris asked quietly.  
"I wasn't mad. I just have so many questions." Steve said.  
"Then ask?"  
"Why didn't you want to tell me about Insight?"  
"Because I didn't like the idea so I knew you wouldn't. It was also above your clearance so I was legally not allowed to."  
"If you don't like it why help?"  
"I helped to invent a gun that would target individuals. The original plan was to just drop bombs on them. That would have killed thousands of innocents. I made it so there was less collateral damage."  
"Who's Wesley?"  
"You sure you don't have any more questions about Project Insight?" Chris asked.  
"Chris, who's Wesley?"  
Chris sighed.  
"Wesley and I were put on a black ops mission together. We had trained together. He was like my big brother. When we were on a mission we ran across some mercs. Top list hired help. Bartoc was the head merc. He snapped Wesley's neck like a twig. Right in front of me. There was nothing I could do. I had three men about to jump on top of me. I killed them all. Every last one of those mercs, but Bartoc got away."  
"I'm so sorry."  
"It's in the past." She shrugged.  
They walked upstairs and their neighbor Kate was walking out of her apartment.  
"Hey, Steve. Hey, Chris." Kate smiled.  
"Hey." Chris replied.  
They walked past Kate and towards their door.  
"Oh, I think you guys left your stereo on." Kate said as she stood at the top of the stairs.  
"Must have forgotten to turn it off this morning. Thank you." Chris smiled.  
She walked downstairs and they looked at the unopened door. Chris and Steve climbed out the window to the fire escape. She pulled out her gun as Steve went through our apartment window first. He grabbed his shield and they crept towards the living room. They looked around the corner and it was Fury.  
"I don't remember giving you a key." Steve said.  
"You think I'd really need a key?" Fury said struggling to sit up in the chair. "My wife kicked me out."  
"Didn't think you were married." Chris said leaning against the wall.  
"There's a lot of things you don't know about me."  
"There inlies our problem." Steve said turning on the light.  
Fury reached over and turned it off. He then showed them his phone that said: ears everywhere.  
"Sorry, but I didn't know where else to go." Fury said.  
He showed them another message saying: SHIELD compromised.  
"Who else knows about you being married?" Chris asked.  
"My friends." Us three.  
Fury stood up and looked at them. Next thing they knew Fury was being shot.  
Steve dragged him out of the living room and Chris crouched next to him looking over his wounds.  
Someone knocked down their door and Steve stood in front of Chris and Fury with his shield.  
"Captain Rodgers, I'm SHIELD special service." Kate said coming towards them.  
"Kate?" Steve asked confused.  
"I was assigned to protect you."  
"By who?"  
"Him." She said looking at Fury.  
"He's been shot and is fading fast." Chris said.  
She pulled out a radio and called for EMTs.  
"Do you have a twenty on the shooter?" Someone asked over the radio.  
"I'm in pursuit." Steve said and ran through the window.  
EMTs arrived and took Fury. Chris waited in their busted up apartment for Steve to come back. She looked around and tried to pick up the shattered pictures. Some glass broke under someone's foot and Chris turned around drawing her gun to see Steve.  
"Are you okay?" Chris asked after running over and hugging him.  
"Yeah." He nodded.  
"Come on. We need to get to the hospital." Chris said walking towards the bike.  
They got to the hospital and Fury was being operated on.  
Steve and Chris stood there with his arm around her shoulders.  
Natasha came in and up to the glass to be standing next to them.  
"Is he gonna make it?" She asked.  
"We don't know." Steve replied.  
"Shooter?"  
"Fast, strong, metal arm." Steve explained.  
"Ballistics?"  
"Three shots, no filings. No way to trace it." Hill said walking up.  
The nurses and doctor started rushing around as Fury's pulse faded. They pulled out the defibrillator, but still nothing. They called it and Chris walked away.  
They gave everyone a chance to see the body, but Chris didn't want to. She stood out in the hall and waited for Steve.  
Natasha came storming out with Steve right behind her.  
"Why was he at your apartment?" Natasha asked them.  
"We don't know." Chris replied.  
"Captain, they want to see you at SHIELD." Rumlow said walking over to them.  
"Okay." Steve said and Rumlow walked away.  
"I don't believe you." Natasha said and walked away.  
Chris looked at Steve and she walked over to Rumlow. She turned around and saw Steve wasn't behind her. He came around the corner a second later.  
"Let's go." Steve said walking out.  
"Move out." Rumlow said to STRIKE.  
They took them in for questioning. Chris waited in the lobby for Steve after they were finished with her.  
Chris was sitting there when Steve came crashing through the roof.  
"Steve!" She yelled and ran towards him as he struggled to stand.  
Once he was up he ran towards her and grabbed her hand pulling her after him.  
They ran to the garage and grabbed the bike. They barely made it out of the garage, but there was another problem. Spikes on the other side of the bridge, and a SHIELD fighter plane.  
"Captain Rogers, stand down."  
They started shooting and Steve grabbed his shield throwing it into one of the turbines.  
"Get ready to jump." Steve yelled before he slammed on the brakes sending them flying.  
Steve landed on the plane and Chris rolled on the ground on the other side of the spikes.  
They ran and found the closest retail store. They changed clothes and made their way to the hospital to grab the flash drive that Steve had apparently hidden there, but it was gone.  
Natasha came up behind them and Steve pushed her into a room across the hall.  
"Where is it?" Steve asked.  
"Safe." Natasha replied.  
"Tell me."  
"Where did you get it?"  
"Why should I tell you?"  
"Fury gave it to you, didn't he? What's on it?"  
"We don't know."  
"Don't you?" Chris asked her.  
"No."  
"Don't lie to me." Steve said getting angry.  
"I don't really know everything. I just act like I do."  
"Do you know that Fury hired the pirates?" Steve asked.  
"Makes sense. The ship was dirty and he needed a way in." Natasha shrugged.  
"Where is the flash drive?" Chris asked.  
"I know who killed him. They call him the Winter Soldier. Not many believe he exists. He's got credit for over 25 assassinations in 50 years. Going after him is a dead end. Trust me. He's a story." Natasha said holding out the flash drive to Steve.  
"Let's find out what he wants." Steve said.


	4. Chapter 4

They all walked outside and Steve looked at Tash.  
"I need you to do something for me." Steve said to her.  
"What?"  
"Chris and I will go and find out what is on here. I need you to set up a safe house for Chris."  
"No! You aren't locking me up while you go risk your life." Chris protested.  
"You can't go back to the apartment. SHIELD saw you with me. I can't protect you. I need to know that you're safe."  
"I can protect myself. I don't need you to babysit me or put me under house arrest."  
"I'm sorry, but I can't risk losing you."  
"I can't risk not knowing if you're coming back or not."  
"I've made up my mind." Steve said.  
"Fine."  
"Can you do that?" Steve asked Tash again.  
"Give me an hour." She said.  
Chris and Steve found a car and drove to the mall. Natasha worked on the safe house while Steve and Chris went to the computer store.  
They were in the store and Chris put the flash drive in the USB port.  
"Knowing SHIELD this has a level six homing program. Once this is booted up SHIELD will know out location." Chris explained.  
"Do you know how much time we'll have?" Steve asked.  
"Nine minutes starting now."  
Chris started trying to break the decryption.  
"It must be protected by some AI. Every time I write a command it rewrites itself." She said continuing to work.  
"Can you override it?"  
"I'm a weapons specialist, Steve. The person who created this is smarter than me. But only by a little bit. I'll try running a tracer. If we can't read the file maybe we can find where it came from."  
"Can I help you guys?" An employee asked.  
"No, my fiancé and I were just looking at some honeymoon destinations." Chris smiled hugging Steve.  
"Yep, we're getting married." Steve said nervously.  
"Where are you guys thinking?" He asked as Chris continued to work on the tracer.  
"New Jersey." Steve answered.  
"I have those same glasses." He said pointing to the glasses Steve was wearing.  
"Wow, you two are like twins." Chris said focused on finding the exact location.  
"I wish. He's a specimen." He said. "If you need anything I'm Aaron."  
"Thanks." Steve said and Aaron walked away.  
Chris continued to work and Steve looked at his watch.  
"You said nine minutes. Time is up."  
"Got it. Do you know it?" Chris asked.  
"I used to. Come on." Steve grabbed the flash drive and they walked out.  
"Standard tac team. Two across, behind and coming right at us. If they engage us, I'll engage while you find Natasha and get to the safe house."  
"Or you can put your arm around me and laugh." Chris said quickly.  
"What?"  
"Do it."  
He did and they walked right past them. Chris and Steve found and escalator and started down. Rumlow was on the one next to them going up. Chris turned and looked at Steve.  
"Kiss me." She said.  
"Now isn't the best time." Steve said.  
"Public displays of affection make people uncomfortable."  
"I know."  
Rumlow was coming closer. Chris grabbed Steve's shirt and pulled him to her. Once Rumlow was past us she let go.  
"You look good in glasses." Chris said.  
"You're just beautiful all the time."  
Chris turned around and walked down the escalator.  
They found Natasha and took a car to the safe house.  
Chris stood at the front door and looked at Steve.  
"I'll be okay. I'll come back." Steve said with his hand on her cheek.  
"Promise?" Chris asked trying to hold back tears.  
"I promise." He said and kissed her. "I love you."  
"I love you too."  
Steve and Chris stood there for a minute just holding each other.  
"You should be going." Chris said pushing him away and going inside.  
She leaned against the closed door and slid to the floor.  
After a few minutes Chris stood up and made her way up to the kitchen. She pulled out a can of soup, but barely ate any. She cleaned up her mess and went to lie in bed. She didn't actually fall asleep until five am.  
Her phone is what woke her up at about seven.  
"Hello?" Chris said fully awake and hoping it was Steve.  
"Chris, I need you at my house. There's an emergency." Sam said.  
"I'll be there in five." Chris said and looked in the garage. There was a car. Thank you, Natasha.  
Chris found the keys under the driver's seat and drove to Wilson's house. She knocked on the front door and he pulled her inside quickly.  
"What's the emergency?" She asked.  
Sam was about to speak when someone interrupted.  
"What are you doing here?"  
Chris turned and saw Steve. A wave of relief washed over her.  
"Sam called me." Chris said resisting the urge to run to him.  
"I thought we needed some more help so I called in the best weapons specialist I know." Sam said defending her.  
"I told you to stay at the safe house." Steve ignored Sam and stepped closer to Chris.  
"When a friend calls me and says there's an emergency I come." She said getting irritated.  
"Chris, you could get hurt. I couldn't live with myself if you got hurt." Steve put his hands on her shoulders and looked at the ground. " I couldn't live if you died."  
Chris lifted his head so he was looking at her.  
"Then I won't die." She gave him a small smile.  
He hugged her and kissed the top of her head. They sat down at the table and started talking.  
"Who at SHIELD could launch a missile strike like that?" Natasha asked.  
"Pierce." Chris said matter of factly.  
"And he just happens to be at the top of the most secure building on the planet." Natasha sighed.  
"He's not alone. Zola's algorithm was on the computers of the Lumerian Star." Steve said.  
"As was Jasper Sitwell. The only officer on the ship." Chris said as they pieced it all together.  
"So, how do the three most wanted people in D.C. kidnap an officer in broad daylight?" Steve asked.  
"You don't." Sam said placing a folder on the table.  
"What's this?" Steve asked.  
"My resume."  
"Falcon?" Chris asked and Sam nodded.  
Steve and Natasha opened the file and started reading through it.  
"Bakhmala? Khalid Khandil mission was you?" Natasha asked.  
"Is this Riley?" Steve asked.  
"Yeah." Sam said quietly.  
"They couldn't bring in choppers because of the RPGs. Did you guys use a stealth chute?" Natasha asked.  
"No, these." Sam said pulling out the pictures of the suits.  
"I thought you said you were a pilot." Steve said.  
"I don't recall saying that."  
"I can't ask you to do this."  
"Captain America needs my help. There really isn't a better reason to get back in."  
"Where can we get one?" Steve asked.  
"The last one is at Fort Meade. It's behind three gates and a steel door about a foot thick." Sam explained.  
"Shouldn't be a problem." Steve said.  
"You still have those guns I made?" Chris asked Sam.  
"The ones for the Khandil mission?"  
"Yeah."  
"You worked that mission too?" Steve asked.  
"Where else would they get their special guns." Chris smiled.  
"I'm starting to like your girlfriend more and more." Natasha said.  
"Me too." Steve smiled.


	5. Chapter 5

After retrieving the Falcon suit, they went for Sitwell. They were waiting for Sitwell in a building and when he got there Sam took him right up to the roof.  
"What is Zola's Algorithm?" Steve asked Sitwell.  
"I don't know what you're talking about." He said walking backwards.  
"Okay then, what were you doing on the Lumerian Star?" Chris asked.  
"Throwing up."  
He hit the edge of the roof and Steve grabbed him by his collar.  
"Gonna throw me off the roof? Not really your style Rogers." Sitwell laughed.  
"You're right. It's hers." Steve said and Natasha kicked him over the edge.  
"So, you two ever gonna tie the knot?" Tash asked.  
"No." Steve said.  
"No?" Chris asked.  
"I mean we haven't talked about it yet."  
"So that means no?"  
"It means we haven't talked about it."  
"That's why you sounded so nervous when I called you my fiancé at the mall. You don't want to get married."  
"Chris,-" Steve was cut off by Falcon coming up and throwing Jasper on the roof.  
"Zola's Algorithm is a program that Insight uses to pick it's targets." Sitwell said frightened that Sam would throw him off the roof again.  
"What targets?" Chris asked.  
"You, you, you." He said pointing at them. "Anyone who is a threat to Hydra. Now. Even in the future."  
"How can it tell in the future?" Steve asked.  
"Everything is recorded digitally these days. It will read everything about people so it can predict their futures." Sitwell explained.  
"What then?" Steve asked.  
"Pierce is going to kill me."  
"Then Insight will kill them if they're seen as a future threat." Chris said realizing it.  
They took Sitwell back down and got in the car.  
"Hydra hates leaks." Sitwell said continuing to panic.  
"Then stick a cork in it." Sam said.  
"Insight launches in sixteen hours. We're cutting it really close here." Natasha said.  
"We'll use Sitwell to bypass all the DNA scans." Steve said.  
"Are you crazy?" Sitwell asked.  
There was a thud on the roof of the car and Sitwell was pulled out of the window and thrown into traffic. Then shots were being fired at them through the top of the car.  
Natasha laid down on the floor in the back seat and Chris jumped up into Steve's lap. Sam hit the brakes and whoever was on top of the car went flying off. Chris pulled out her gun to shoot, but they were rear-ended. The Winter Soldier pulled out the steering wheel. They were about to crash. Steve grabbed all of them and they slid on the shield as the car rolled. They stood up and a grenade was fired at them. Steve pushed Chris away and used his shield to protect himself. It hit the shield and Steve went flying. Natasha, Sam and Chris hid behind cars as they took heavy fire. Chris was grazed on the arm, but she barely noticed. Natasha had been running and trying to dodge the grenades the Winter Soldier had launched at her. She had somehow ended up down below. Chris stood up and they had all repelled off the bridge. The last one was about to go down, but Sam killed him. Sam took the guys gun and they started to help Steve. He seemed to be doing really well himself as he redirected the bullets that were fired at him to kill the men shooting him. Sam and Chris just provided backup for the ones he had his back to. Sam and Chris were still trying to take out one guy that just would not let the bullets hit him. Chris looked down at Steve who was looking at them.  
"You two go. I've got him." Sam yelled and continued to shoot.  
Chris launched herself over the edge of the highway and began to fall through the air. She landed in Steve's arms. He put her down and she grabbed a gun following him after the Winter Soldier and Natasha. They found them and Steve ran at the Winter Soldier while Chris ran to Natasha. Steve was just pounding on him while Natasha and Chris ran. Chris just wanted to get her to safety. She sat her against a building and ran back to help Steve.  
Steve stopped fighting when the Winter Soldier's mask came off. He was just standing there. Chris picked up his dropped grenade launcher and shot at him. He dodged and ran away. Steve looked at Chris then back at where the Winter Soldier had been standing.  
There were sirens and a dozen SUVs pulled up. Rumlow and the rest of the STRIKE team climbed out with guns pointed at all four of them.  
"Put the shield down, cap." Rumlow said to Steve.  
They held up our hands and got on their knees. Chris watched as they pressed a gun to Steve's head.  
"No!" Chris yelled and elbowed the guy cuffing her. She got up to run towards him, but she was tackled.  
"Chris!" Steve yelled.  
"Steve!"  
They cuffed them all and put them in the back of a police van.  
Chris sat next to Steve and he looked her over.  
"You okay?"  
"I'm fine." Chris said glaring as they closed the doors.  
Steve leaned over and slowly kissed the top of her head.  
"What happened out there?" She asked.  
"It was Bucky. He looked at me as if he never knew me." Steve said looking at the ground.  
"That's not possible. It was seventy years ago." Sam said.  
"Zola. Bucky's unit was captured in '43. They must have experimented on him. Whatever they did helped Bucky survive that fall off the train. They must have found him..."  
"It's not your fault, baby." Chris said and reached a hand to hold his.  
"Even when I had lost everything I still had Bucky."  
"We need a doctor. If we don't get pressure on their wounds they will bleed out." Sam said.  
The guard just turned on the electrical stick and that was supposed to be their signal to shut up.  
"Their?" Chris asked.  
"Your arm." Sam said nodding towards her right arm and then down at her leg.  
Chris looked down and saw the tear in her shirt and the blood stain around it and the dark spot on her upper hip.  
"Oh, look at that." Chris said.  
The guard used their stick and tazed the other guard, knocking them out.  
They watched as Agent Hill took off the helmet.  
"That was squeezing my brain." She said.  
She looked at Sam then back at the other three.  
"Who's this?" She asked.  
"Sam Wilson. He and I were stationed together in Bakhmala." Chris said.  
She nodded at him. They put a hole in the bottom of the truck and used it to roll out from underneath. They ran and hopped into another van. Hill drove them all somewhere. The van stopped and Steve opened the door helping Chris to get out. Sam followed Chris and helped Natasha.  
They were inside a dam of some sort. Hill led the way and someone was running at them.  
"GSWs. They've lost at least a pint." Hill yelled.  
"Maybe two." Sam said looking at how pale Tash was.  
"Let me take them." He yelled back.  
"They'll want to see him first." Hill said.  
Hill led the way. They walked up to a curtain and she pulled it aside to reveal a very living Fury in a hospital bed.  
"'Bout damn time." Was all he said.  
Natasha and Chris were being patched up while Fury talked to them.  
"I came here with a lacerated spinal column, cracked sternum, shattered collar bone, perforated liver and a head ache to top it off, but not dead. Oh, and a collapsed lung. Other than that, I'm perfect." Fury said.  
"Your heart stopped beating." Chris said as she was getting her arm stitched up.  
"Tetrodotoxin B. Slows the pulse to practically dead. Banner developed it for stress. It doesn't really work for him."  
"Why the secrets? Why not tell us you were alive?" Steve asked.  
"The attempt on Fury's life had to be successful. So, we made it look successful." Hill explained.  
"I wasn't sure who I could trust." Fury said.  
Chris was taken out of the room so they could cover up the wound on her hip. It wasn't a bullet wound. It was a burn. They gave her something to take away the pain and then wrapped it up. Chris put her clothes back on and was led to where everyone was now. She walked into the room and Steve looked at her, but she decided to stand on the opposite side of the table.  
"Well, look who decided to join us." Sam smiled.  
"We need to stop that launch." Chris said as she walked in.  
"The council isn't really accepting my calls right now." Fury said and opened a case.  
"What are those?" Sam asked.  
"Once the helicarriers reach 3,000 feet they will triangulate with Insight satellites. Causing them to weaponize." Hill explained.  
"We'll breach the helicarriers and replace their targeting with our own." Fury finished.  
"It can't be just one or two. You'll need to do all three for it to work." Chris said.  
"Exactly. Now, we need to assume that everyone aboard is HYDRA. We change out the blades and maybe we can salvage..."  
"We won't be salvaging anything. We aren't just taking down these carriers, we are taking down SHIELD." Steve said interrupting Fury.  
"SHIELD had nothing to do with this."  
"You gave them this mission. This is how it will end. You said it yourself, SHIELD has been compromised. HYDRA was growing right under our noses and none of us noticed it."  
"I've noticed. That's why we're in this cave."  
"And how many have we lost before you did?"  
"I really didn't know about Barnes." Fury said.  
"Would you have told me even if you had? SHIELD and HYDRA. They both have to go."  
"He's right." Chris said.  
Fury looked at the rest of the table, but nobody disagreed.  
"Looks like you're giving orders now Cap." Fury said leaning back in his chair.


	6. Chapter 6

Steve gave everyone their jobs and then just walked out. Chris followed him but left him alone for a few minutes before joining him on top of the dam.  
"Hey." Chris said walking over to him.  
"Hey." He said trying to give her a smile.  
"You know he'll be there, right?" She asked.  
"Yeah." Steve said looking at the ground.  
"I know you want to save him, Steve. But sometimes people are just beyond saving."  
"I don't know if I can believe that."  
"He doesn't know you anymore."  
"He will."  
"I guess I better go get ready." Chris said and turned to walk away.  
"Chris."  
Chris turned and looked back at Steve. He walked over and stood in front of her.  
"Just because we haven't talked about getting married doesn't mean I don't want to get married to you. I just haven't really gotten around to talking about it with you. I love you, and I want you to know that I never want to see you hurt again. Although with me you've already been shot twice."  
"Not your fault."  
"I know, but I need to know one thing before we go into this battle where we might not survive."  
"And that is?"  
"If I were to ask you to marry me, what would you say?" Steve asked.  
"Please tell me this isn't you trying to propose."  
"No, this is me trying to propose." Steve said and got down on one knee. "So, will you answer my question?"  
"I would say yes." Chris smiled and Steve pulled a ring out of his pocket.  
He put it on and stood up hugging her.  
"I never wanted to talk about it because I wanted it to be a surprise when I asked you."  
"I'm truly surprised." Chris smiled.  
"I love you."  
"I love you too." She said and kissed him.  
"Let's go suit up."  
"You plan on wearing that?" She asked him looking at his jeans and tee-shirt.  
"If you're going to fight in a war you need a uniform."  
He smiled and ran back inside. Chris walked in and got suited up in her gear as well.  
When Steve returned he had his old uniform on from the 40s.  
"You didn't steal that did you?" Chris asked with a smile.  
"I'm just borrowing it. Besides, it was mine in the first place." Steve smiled and kissed her.  
The two met up with Sam and Hill. They walked through the woods to get back to the city. Natasha was already in the city trying to get into the building.  
They stood outside a control room while Hill messed with some frequency so they would need to open the door. They did and Sam and Chris had their guns pointed right at him.  
"Excuse us." Steve said and they all walked inside.  
Steve walked right over to the PA and started to talk in to it.  
"Attention all SHIELD Agents. This is Steve Rogers. I'm sure you've heard a lot about me the last few days. Some of you were ordered to kill me. But, you need to know the truth. SHIELD isn't what we think it is. HYDRA has taken over. Pierce is their leader. STRIKE and Insight are HYDRA as well. I don't know who else, but they are here, in this building. They are close to getting what they want. Absolute control. They shot Fury. I promise, it won't end there. If you launch those helicarriers HYDRA will kill anyone who stands in their way. I'm asking a lot, but the price of freedom is high. If I'm the only one willing to pay then so be it." Steve said.  
"Did you write that down first?" Sam asked jokingly.  
"I'm just that good." Steve said.  
Chris looked outside and saw the hanger doors opening for Insight.  
"Steve, we have a problem." Chris said.  
"They're initiating launch." Hill said from the computer.  
"Sam and I will go after the ships." Steve said looking at Chris.  
"I'll go too. I'll take the third one." She said.  
"No."  
"Too bad." Chris said and took the third chip.  
They ran out to the bay and went for the ships.  
"How can we tell the good from the bad?" Sam asked.  
"If they shoot at you they're bad." Steve said and Sam took off.  
"Need a lift?" Steve asked.  
"Would be nice." Chris said and Steve held her as he jumped down to the next helicarrier.  
"Be careful." Steve said and then jumped to the next one.  
People started shooting at Chris and she ran to hide behind some cargo. She was shooting at them and trying to get inside. She grabbed two grenades and cleared herself a path to the door. Chris ran to it and closed it leaning against it to catch her breath.  
"Eight minutes." Hill said over comms.  
Chris started running and made her way to the dome. There were a few HYDRA there, but she made short work of them. She opened the chip bay and placed her chip inside.  
"Alpha Lock." Chris said.  
"Bravo Lock." Sam said.  
Chris ran up to the top deck and hid behind some containers as more people began to shoot at her.  
"Sam, I need a ride to Charlie carrier." Chris said.  
"Chris, stay away." Steve said.  
Chris saw Sam coming and she smiled.  
"Not a chance." Chris said and ran jumping off the edge.  
Sam caught Chris and carried her to the third carrier. He set her down then landed next to her. They walked in together. All the sudden Chris was kicked down. Chris looked up and there was the winter soldier.  
Sam went to fly away, but one of his wings got ripped off. The soldier threw him over the edge.  
"Sam!" Chris yelled.  
"I'm okay." Sam said over the comms.  
Chris let out her breath and turned to see Bucky still standing there. He went to bring his arm down on her, but she rolled away. she stood up and ran for the door. She knew Bucky was behind her, but there was no way she could beat him.  
Chris ran inside and came face to face with more HYDRA. She sighed and they started shooting. She dodged out of the way and then shot them herself. She looked behind her, but Bucky was nowhere to be seen.  
Chris ran to the dome and saw Steve and Bucky standing there. That's where he went. They were fighting and Steve was trying to get to the chips.  
"Steve throw it." Chris yelled and ran towards the center. He pulled it out of his belt and threw it towards her. She caught it and then felt a sharp pain in her stomach. She looked up to see Bucky with his gun pointed right at her.  
"Chris!" Steve yelled.  
Bucky knocked him off the catwalk.  
Chris sat there on the ground pressing her hand to her wound. She looked at the chips and pulled herself up. She slowly made her way to the chips. She could hear Steve and Bucky fighting below.  
"One minute." Hill said.  
The noise below stopped and Chris looked over to see Steve making his way towards her. She heard a gunshot and Steve fell clutching his leg. She refocused on the chips and made her way to them.  
"30 seconds." Hill said.  
Chris pulled out the chip and put in SHIELD's.  
"Charlie lock." Chris said breathlessly.  
She looked and saw Steve climbing up next to her with a bullet hole in his leg.  
"Cap. you guys need to get out of there." Hill said.  
"You okay?" Steve asked.  
"Yeah." Chris groaned. "You?"  
"Been better."  
"Let's go." She said.  
"Fire now." Steve said to Hill.  
"But,"  
"Do it!"  
Steve looked at her and kissed her.  
"We'll get out of here. I promise."  
They heard a scream and looked down to see Bucky stuck.  
"We'll get him." Chris said.  
They jumped down and Chris felt pain shoot through her body. She collapsed on the ground and tried to keep pressure on the bullet hole in her stomach.  
Steve was trying to lift the structure off of Bucky. Bucky was helping him push and then wiggled out.  
"You know you know me." Steve said to him.  
"No I don't." Bucky yelled and punched him.  
"We've known each other our whole lives." Steve said.  
"No!" And he hit him again.  
"Steve." Chris said as he fell next to her.  
"I promised you we'd get out of this." Steve said and stood back up.  
Steve looked at Bucky.  
"Your name is James Buchanan Barnes."  
Steve took off his helmet and shield.  
"I won't fight you. You've always been my friend."  
"You're my mission." Bucky said and tackled him.  
Bucky just started beating Steve.  
"Steve!" She yelled unable to get up.  
"Then finish your mission. Because I'm with you till the end of the line." Steve said weakly.  
Something came crashing down and broke the part of the dome that they were in off. Chris sat there at the edge and watched as Steve fell into the water.  
"Steve!" She yelled.  
Chris looked over and Bucky was just hanging there. She looked back at the water and started crying. She saw the chopper and they picked her up. Chris looked for Bucky but, he was gone.  
Natasha looked at her with sorrow. Chris broke down and started crying.  
"Hold on. Listen." Sam said and turned up the radio.  
"Transporting Captain Rogers to the hospital." An officer said over the radio.  
"Which one?" Fury asked.  
They told him and her heart raced.


	7. Chapter 7

They landed on the helicopter pad of the hospital and Chris ran inside.  
"Authorized personnel only." An officer said as they stepped in front of me.  
"She's his fiancé." Natasha snapped at him.  
"Sorry ma'am." He said and stepped aside.  
Chris ran to the room and looked in to see he was okay. She let out a sigh of relief and walked into the room to sit down next to him.  
"Ma'am, you're bleeding." A nurse said to her when she walked in and saw all the blood on the chair.  
"Oh, that's right." Chris said and looked at my stomach.  
"If you want after the operation we can put you in the same room."  
"Please." Chris said.  
She smiled and nodded. Chris went to stand up, but now that all the adrenaline was gone it was painful again.  
She was operated on and placed in the same room as Steve. They wanted her to rest and give her body a chance to heal but there was no way she could do that. They wouldn't even let her sit in the chair next to Steve. They were worried about the stitches.  
Chris had the TV on and was watching an old Michael Keaton Batman.  
"Batman." She heard a weak voice say.  
She looked over and Steve was smiling at her.  
"Yeah." She smiled back.  
He reached out his hand and Chris took it.  
"I told you we'd get out." Steve said.  
"Yeah, but next time let's get out together and without the death scare."  
"I promise."  
Steve just stared at her.  
"I love you." He said.  
"I love you too." Chris smiled.  
Once their wounds were healed enough to move, and Steve's face was back to normal, They were released. They put on some clothes that Sam brought from their old apartment.  
Sam picked them up and drove them to the cemetery where Nick Fury was said to be buried. They found the tombstone and stood next to it.  
Fury walked up in his jeans, hoodie and sunglasses.  
"I guess you guys have been through this before?" Nick asked.  
"You get used to it." Steve smirked.  
"We've been data mining HYDRA's files. A lot of rats didn't go down with Insight. I'm going to Europe. Was hoping you'd come." Fury said to Steve.  
"There's something I've got to do." Steve said.  
"What about you Wilson? We could use someone like you."  
"I'm more a soldier."  
"I know the answer, but what about you?" He asked Chris.  
"If the Caps staying. I'm staying." She said squeezing his hand.  
Steve smiled at her and they all shook Fury's hand before he walked away.  
"So, this is it?" Natasha said walking over to them and looking at the tomb stone.  
"You aren't going with Fury?" Chris asked.  
"Nah."  
"You staying here?" Steve asked.  
"Nope." She smiled. "I blew all my covers. I guess I need to find a new one."  
"That could take a while." Steve said.  
"I hope so. I got that thing you asked for. I called in some favors at Kiev." Natasha said and handed Steve a file.  
Natasha hugged Chris.  
"You two be careful." She said and walked away.  
Steve opened the file and it was Bucky's.  
"Steve, don't do it." Chris said.  
"You don't have to come with me." He said.  
"I do. There's this thing on my finger that you gave me. It kinda means I should be there to make sure you don't get yourself killed." She said pointing to the ring.  
"I thought it meant I get to kill anyone that touches you." Steve said wrapping his arms around her waist.  
"Not completely." She smiled.  
He leaned down and kissed her.  
"Get a room." Sam whined.  
"Turn around." Chris whined back.  
"Bite me, Carter."  
"Don't tempt me, Wilson."  
Sam laughed and walked to the car.  
"I love you." Chris said.  
"I love you too." Steve said.  
He kissed her one more time then they started to walk to the car together.  
"Shotgun!" Chris yelled and pushed him down and started running.  
She heard him groan and she turned to see him lying on the ground like he was in pain. She walked back over to him.  
"I'm sorry. Did you land on your stitches?" She asked concerned.  
"Nope." Steve said and pulled her to the ground while he ran to the car.  
"Not cool!" Chris yelled chasing after him.  
"You pushed me first." Steve said holding the handle to the passenger side door.  
"You played the injured card."  
"So." He opened the door and Chris jumped into the front seat before he had the chance to.  
"What?"  
"Too slow." She said sticking out my tongue.  
He sighed with a smiled and closed the door. He got in the back seat and Sam laughed.  
"You owe me." Steve said pointing at her.  
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Chris said and laughed.


	8. Chapter 8

After SHIELD fell Steve and Chris moved further into town. With their apartment destroyed they needed to set up in another one. Steve liked it but he wanted to move back to Brooklyn where he was born. How could Chris argue?  
Chris was now considered an official avenger. Hawkeye and everyone else still called her Trigger, but it was all in good fun.  
"I mean come on guys. Can't I get a cooler name than Trigger?" Chris asked as they were riding to another mission. They were pretty sure Struker, Hydras lead head hunter, was using Loki's scepter to experiment on humans.  
"Trigger is pretty cool." Clint said trying to contain his laugh.  
"Screw you." Chris said punching his shoulder.  
"I'm pretty sure that's Steve's job." Tony said over the comms and everyone started laughing but Steve.  
"You get Hawkeye. Yeah you have the bow, but I'm the real sniper here."  
"Rude." Clint said in mock offense.  
Natasha was driving, and Clint and Chris stood up shooting people as they passed them by. Natasha slammed on the breaks and everyone jumped out of the moving vehicle and over the barbed wire fence.  
"Shit!" Tony yelled over the comms.  
"Tony, language. Jarvis, what do you have from upstairs?" Steve asked.  
"Central building is being protected by some sort of force field. Strucker's technology is beyond any other base we've faced." Jarvis told them all.  
"The scepter must be here then." Thor said.  
Natasha and Chris took out the nest of some of their larger guns.  
"Would you like to?" Tash said gesturing to the giant gun.  
"No, I would love to." Chris smiled and stood behind the gun aiming it at the HYDRA men.  
"This is taking a while." Tash said covering Chris.  
"Well we kinda lost our element of surprise." Clint said.  
"No one else wants to comment on the fact that Cap just told me to watch my language?" Tony asked them.  
"You know the Cap, Tony. Always to pure and true." Chris said enjoying blasting people with the powerful gun.  
"We have an enhanced in the field." Steve informed everyone.  
Chris was then hit sending her flying away from the gun.  
"Clint is down." Tash yelled. "Someone should deal with that bunker."  
There was a roar over the comms and everyone knew that Bruce had gladly taken care of that.  
"Thanks."  
Steve ran over to Chris and helped her with the pain in the butts that had her surrounded. After they were knocked out, she grabbed one of their guns and helped Steve.  
"Hey baby." Chris smiled at him.  
"Hey gorgeous." He returned the smile.  
"Please no flirting over the comms." Tony said in a slightly annoyed tone.  
"Stark we need inside that main building." Steve told him.  
"Drawbridge is down." Tony announced.  
Steve and Chris ran over to Thor.  
"The enhanced?" Thor asked.  
"He's fast. Knocked me out of the seat without warning. Speaking of that. I want one of those guns." Chris said turning to Steve for the last part.  
"No."  
"Clint is pretty bad. We need an evac." Tash informed everyone.  
"I'll get Barton to the jet. You, Stark and Carter get the scepter." Thor suggested.  
"Deal." Steve said and they looked over to see a tank.  
"They look excited." Chris said and stood behind Steve and he held up his shield for Thor. Thor struck the shield and took out everyone and the tank before taking off.  
"For gosh sake watch your language." Tony joked.  
"That's not going away any time soon is it?" Steve asked Chris.  
"Nope." She smiled and kissed Steve before running off in opposite directions.  
Chris was checking to make sure they had no enemies unaccounted for.  
"We've got things handled out here." Tash said.  
"Find Banner. It's time for a lullaby." Steve replied.  
"I've got the perimeter secure." Chris informed everyone.  
"Good job, beautiful."  
"What did I say about flirting over comms?" Tony joked again.  
"That was all him."  
Chris continued to walk around sure to stay away from Tash and Bruce.  
"There's a second enhanced. Female. Do not engage."  
Chris raised her gun keeping a sharp eye out for both enhanceds.  
"I got Struker." Steve told everyone.  
"I've got something bigger." Tony said with a tone of disbelief. "Thor, I have the scepter."  
Everyone met back at the jet and Steve picked Chris up in a hug and carried her on. Tony landed and looked at them.  
"This is why we shouldn't date coworkers. It makes the rest of us feel awkward." Tony said coming out of the suit and sitting in the pilot's seat and beginning to take off.  
"When are you two getting married anyways?" Tash asked.  
"When there's no more HYDRA bases to take care of." Chris said as Steve put me down. She walked over to Clint and grabbed his hand.

"How you doing?" She asked.  
"Been better, Trigger." Clint smiled knowing I hatter that name.  
Chris rolled her eyes and walked away.  
"Thor, report on the Hulk." Tash said.  
"The gates of hell are filled with the cries of your victims."  
Tash looked at Thor and Bruce held his head in his hands.  
"Not the dead. The wounded. Whimpering and complaining and tails of sprained deltoids and gout." Thor said trying to recover.  
"Good job." Chris said patting Thor's shoulder and giving him a smile.  
"Banner, Dr. Cho is almost at the tower from Seoul. Can she set up in your office?" Tony asked.  
"Yeah," Bruce said back.  
Chris sat down in a seat and put in her headphones. Bruce needed his music and she needed hers.  
They landed at Stark towers and unloaded Clint. Chris took off my headphones and helped Steve pack up their stuff on the plane.  
"Everything is set, boss." Hill said coming aboard the jet.  
"I'm not the boss, Cap is the boss. I just pay for everything." Tony said looking at Steve.  
"Word on Struker?" Steve asked Hill.  
"NATO has him."  
"The enhanced?" Chris asked.  
"Wanda and Pietro Maximoff. He has an increased metabolism along with improved thermal homeostasis. She has telekinesis and mental manipulating." Hill explained as the three of them walked towards the elevator.  
Steve looked between the two of them.  
"He's fast she can control your mind." Chris said and he nodded.  
"I'm sure we'll see them again." Steve said and handed the tablet back to Hill.  
"It says they volunteered for experimentation. Who would do that?" Hill said as Steve and Chris entered the elevator.  
"Yeah, what monster would let a German scientist experiment on them to protect their country?" Steve said as the doors closed.  
"You're not a monster." Chris said turning and looking at Steve after the doors closed.  
"You may not think so, but others do."  
"That's because they don't know the kind and caring man that I fell in love with. Which is good. I can't have any other women stealing my fiancé." She said holding his face.  
"I love you." Steve said smiling.  
"I love you too." Chris said and kissed him.  
They got out and Chris went to go check on Clint.  
"Looks like he's flat lining. Call it. What's the time?" Chris asked joking around.  
"Nope. You're stuck with me forever. I'm just gonna be made of plastic." Clint said.  
"You'll be made of you, Mr. Barton. Your own girlfriend won't be able to tell the difference," Dr. Cho said smiling at the team.  
"I don't have a girlfriend." Clint said.  
"That I can't help with."  
"I'll see you later Clint." Chris said.  
"Later Trigger."  
"One of these days I'm gonna show you how I got that name." She said and walked out.


	9. Chapter 9

Three days had passed and Steve and Chris had spent a lot of time looking up the twins and relaxing. Stark had decided to throw a party to celebrate their success and everyone was invited. Chris was in her dorm getting ready for this party. Pepper was always loading up Chris's room with her old clothes. She knows her well enough to know she only own jeans and maybe some nice blouses. Chris pulled out a black cocktail dress and slipped into it. She looked in the mirror and there was a knock.  
"Come in." Chris said.  
Luckily it was Natasha.  
"Hey Tash." She smiled.  
"Hey. Having some troubles?"  
"I don't really wear dresses. Or get dressed up. Or go out."  
"Well lucky for you I know just what to do."  
Tash did her hair in loose curls and her bangs pinned back.  
"You're the best." Chris smiled at her.  
"Well, I try." Tash laughed.  
They walked out together to the main area where the party was being held.  
Chris saw Sam and Steve talking and decided to join them.  
"So how's the move to Brooklyn going?" Sam asked.  
"If we could afford a place it would be going well." Chris said walking up to them.  
"There's my girl. As gorgeous as ever." Steve kissed her cheek.  
"Sorry I took so long. You know how much I hate getting dressed up."  
"But you are always worth the wait."  
"Well it would be rude of me not to let you go be a man and do manly things without your fiancé."  
"No, please. I get to do those things all the time. Just stay with me for now."  
"If you insist." Chris smiled at him.  
They walked around and ended up hanging out with Thor, Tony and a bunch if veterans exchanging war stories.  
"And here I was in the middle of the desert with no food no water and 1 mag. I'm out there for five days with no sign of life until I come across the group that blew up my convoy. There's probably 20 guys and I've got a small little 15 mag. I was almost ready to just pass them by and find the next town but then it hit me. The smell of food. Real food. I'm tellin ya don't stand between a girl with a gun that hasn't had food in days and a good meal. You will lose. Took them all down, grabbed some food and sat down enjoying a well-deserved meal." All the vets were laughing and Chris looked up to see Steve just smiling at her.  
"Your girlfriends may run companies and be on track for a Nobel prize, but my girlfriend is the best." Steve said to both Thor and Tony before wrapping his arm around her shoulders and kissing the side of her head.  
"Now I need a drink. What do you have?" Chris asked reaching for the glass.  
"No, no, no, no." Thor said before she could grab Steve's glass.  
"What?" Chris asked.  
"I'm drinking Thor's stuff." Steve admitted.  
"This was aged for 1000 years in the barrels built from the wreck of Grunhel's fleet. Not meant for mere mortals." Thor explained.  
"You do understand that you gave this to my fiancé. A man who may have a fast metabolism, but unable to keep up with his fiancé." Chris said.  
"Thor give her a little. She's right."  
"Only one." Thor said.  
He poured her a shot and she downed it.  
"Oh god. One is all I need that was disgusting."  
Steve and Thor laughed and Chris grabbed her beer to wash it down.  
Steve went to go grab them both another beer and when she looked over she saw Natasha walking away and Steve talking to Bruce. Good. It was about time Tash and Bruce got together.  
Tash and Steve were soon both by Chris' side.  
"So, now that we're celebrating the end of our mission. When are you two getting married?" Tash asked them.  
"Well, we didn't want anything big." Steve said.  
"Yeah and we have everything we need." Chris smiled.  
"I'd say probably here soon."  
"I hope to be invited." Tash said with a smile.  
"The Avengers are the only ones invited. We don't really have any other friends." Chris said with a small laugh.  
"I'm so happy for you guys. I mean it's been forever."  
"Trust me, we know." Steve said looking down at her.

After everyone else had left, the team just sat around talking. The boys and Chris were talking about the hammer. Chris was sitting next to Steve with his arm wrapped around her shoulders.  
"It's a trick." Clint said.  
"How so?" Thor asked.  
"'Whosoever be worthy shall haveth the power.'" Clint said in his mock Oden voice.  
"Then be my guest." Thor said gesturing to the hammer sitting on the table.  
Clint stood up and walked over to the hammer.  
"This is gonna be good." Chris said and Steve laughed.  
"You've had a rough week no one will blame you if you can't do." Tony said  
Clint grabbed the handle and tried to lift it up.  
"I still don't know how you do it." Clint laughed and let go of the hammer.  
"Smell the judgement." Tony said.  
"Please, Stark, go ahead and try."  
Tony stood up and unbuttoned his jacket.  
"I'm never one to back away from a challenge. It's all physics. If I lift it, I rule Asgard?" Tony asked getting ready to lift the hammer.  
"Yes." Thor answered with a smile.  
"My first decree will be to re institute prima nocta."  
Tony grunted as he tried to lift the hammer with no success.  
"One second." Tony said and walked away.  
He came back with the glove from his suit to try and get it up, but still nothing. He even had James use his glove to help him and still not even a budge.  
Then Banner tried as himself and nothing happened.  
"Your turn baby." Chris said patting Steve's chest.  
"Okay." He said getting up.  
"No pressure Steve." Tony said from his spot on the couch.  
Steve rolled up his sleeves and looked down at the hammer. He began to pull and it budged a little. Chris looked over and the smile on Thor's face had fallen. Steve let go and Thor let out his breath.  
"Nothing." Thor laughed as Steve sat back down next to Chris.  
The guys looked between Chris and Tash.  
"That is not a question I need answered." Tash said leaning back.  
"I think I already know the answer." Chris said shaking her head.  
"It's rigged." Tony said.  
"You bet your ass." Clint said.  
"Steve, he said a bad word." Hill said pointing at Clint.  
"Did you tell everyone that?" Steve asked looking at Chris.  
"The handle must be imprinted. So, whoever is carrying Thor's fingerprints can lift it." Tony concluded.  
"Or there's a simple explanation." Thor said standing to grab the hammer. "None of you are worthy."  
Everyone laughed until there was a high pitched noise. They looked over to the elevator and there was a machine standing there.  
"How could you be worthy? You're all killers." It asked as it limped closer to us all.  
"Tony, what's going on?" Chris asked not taking her eyes off of the machine in front of them.  
"Jarvis?" Tony said.  
"Sorry, I was asleep." The destroyed legionnaire suit said.  
"Jarvis, reboot legionnaire OS. There's a buggy suit." Tony said.  
"There was a terrible noise. I had to kill the other guy."  
"You killed someone?" Steve asked.  
"Didn't want to, but in the real world we have to make ugly choices all the time."  
"Who sent you?" Thor asked.  
"I see a suit of armor around the world." A recording of Tony's voice played.  
"Ultron." Banner said as if coming to a realization.  
"The one and only. I'm on a mission for peace in our time."  
Then the other legionnaire suits came crashing through the walls. Steve kicked up the table to use it as a shield, but they hit it and sent both Chris and Steve flying backwards. They were attacking and they were all ducking. Chris jumped behind the couch and watched as Steve jumped on one's back and tried to disable it, but it slammed him into the wall.  
"Steve!" Chris yelled and pulled out her gun shooting it as Steve fell to the ground. She helped him up and continued to shoot at the drones. Chris covered Steve as he saved Dr. Cho and grabbed his shield from Clint.  
"Tony!" Chris yelled.  
"I'm working on it." Tony yelled on the back of another legionnaire.  
Steve caught his shield and threw it at the remaining legionnaire causing it to be sliced in half and fall to pieces.  
"I know you all mean well. You want to protect the world, but don't want it to change. How do you save humanity if you doesn't evolve? The only path to peace is with the Avengers extinction." Ulrton said and Thor threw his hammer through it causing him to shatter.


	10. Chapter 10

The Avengers all went up to the lab and hoped that Tony or Bruce would be able to tell them what happened and why no one was informed of it sooner.  
"There's nothing left. Ultron cleared out everything and then used the internet to escape." Bruce said.  
"Ultron." Steve said expecting one of the scientists the respond to him.  
"He was in everything. Files, surveillance, Jarvis. He knows things about us that no one else does." Chris said looking through the computers.  
"So he's in the internet. What if he decides to go after something more?" James asked everyone else.  
"Like nuclear codes." Hill said still trying to pull glass out of her foot.  
"He said he wanted us dead not the entire world." Tash said.  
"He didn't say dead. He said extinct." Steve said looking at everyone.  
"He also said he killed someone." Clint pointed out.  
"There was no one else here." Hill pointed out.  
"Yes there was." Tony said pulling up the hologram of Jarvis's program.  
"He killed Jarvis." Chris said realizing what had happened.  
"Jarvis was the first line of defense. He was probably about to shut down Ultron." Steve said.  
"Ultron could have assimilated Jarvis, but this looks more like rage." Bruce pointed out looking at the hologram.  
Thor walked over and lifted Tony off his feet.  
"Use your words." Tony said.  
"Thor, did you get the legionnaire?" Chris asked and Thor dropped Tony.  
"I lost him after about 100 miles. It was headed north. It has the scepter." Thor said.  
"We'll get it back." Chris said trying to keep calm in this situation.  
"Clear and present is Ultron." Tash said with her arms crossed.  
"You built this program. Why is trying to kill you?" Dr. Cho asked.  
Tony started laughing and everyone looked at him.  
"You find this funny?" Thor asked.  
"It's not, right?" Tony asked as if he was unsure. "This is terrible."  
"This could have been avoided if you hadn't messed with the scepter." Thor said walking back over to Tony.  
"No, this is funny. It's hilarious that you don't understand that we need this." Tony said.  
"Tony, this is not the right time." Bruce warned.  
"Really? You just give up every time someone snarls?" Tony asked Bruce.  
"Only when we've created a killer."  
"We weren't even close."  
"You did something. And you did it here. Without even talking to us. We were supposed to be different than SHIELD." Steve said in his pissed off dad voice.  
"Did you guys forget who carried a nuke through a wormhole? Saved New York? An alien army came charging through space. We're the Avengers. And what had happened 300 feet above us is the endgame. How did you plan to beat that?" Tony asked.  
"As a team." Steve said.  
"We'll lose."  
"Then we'll lose as a team. Ultron is calling us out. We need to find him before he's ready for us. The world is a big place. We gotta make it smaller." Steve said before he walked out.  
Chris followed behind him. Once they were out of sight Steve ran his fingers through his hair.  
"Steve, baby. Just breath." Chris said standing in front of him.  
"Tony created a monster that wants to kill us. Kill you."  
"Bucky wanted to kill us. A lot of people have wanted to kill us. That's never stopped us before. Neither will this." She grabbed his hands and held them in hers.  
"Why must you always be so calm?"  
"I'm not calm. I'm freaking out, but I know that together we can get through anything."  
Steve sighed and pulled Chris in for a hug. His head was resting on top of her own and she could hear his heart racing in his chest.  
"I love you." He said.  
"I love you too."

When the sun came up no one had slept. Chris was wearing leggings and a hoodie. She was sitting on her bed trying to keep calm. Steve was one of two people that knew about what had happened in the military, and even then Steve didn't know the whole story. She now knew that Ultron knew. She didn't know what he would do with that information. Who he would tell. If he would tell Steve that she hadn't been completely honest with him.  
"Hey." Steve said causing her to jump.  
"Hey." Chris smiled.  
"What's wrong?"  
"Just everything Ultron knows."  
"No one will find out about your scars."  
"I just don't want anyone to think of me as a monster."  
"You were tortured and you managed to escape. No one would ever think you're a monster. Now come on. We got some stuff." Steve said and they walked out.  
As they were walking down the hall Steve handed Chris the tablet.  
"Ultron is sending us a message." Steve said as she looked at the word peace written in Strucker's blood above his head.  
"Pretty strong message." She said as they entered the lab.  
Steve handed the tablet to Thor.  
"What's that?" Tony asked and Thor slammed the tablet into his chest.  
"Ultron killed Strucker." Chrsi said.  
"And he left a message just for us." Tony said looking over the picture.  
"Why would he do this? He already gave us his speech." Tash asked.  
"Strucker knew something Ultron didn't want us to know." Steve said.  
"Everything on Strucker is gone." Tash said looking at the computer he was sitting in front of.  
"We still have paper copies." Chris said.  
Steve and Thor helped Chris grab the boxes and they all started going through them.  
"I know him." Tony said pointing to the file Bruce was holding. "He operates of the coast of Africa. Black market arms."  
Steve gave Tony a look that made Chris glad she was between them.  
"There are conventions and you meet people. I wouldn't sell him anything. He was talking about finding a game changer."  
"Look at this." Thor said holding out the file.  
"It's a tattoo." Tony said.  
"No, I see what he's talking about. The brand on the left side of his neck below his ear. I know this brand. It means thief in Wakanda. They brand you so everyone knows you're a thief." Chris said.  
"If this guy got out of Wakanda with their goods..." Tony said looking at Steve.  
"Richard said he got the last of it." Steve said.  
"What comes out of Wakanda?" Bruce asked.  
"The strongest metal on Earth." Tony answered.  
"If he has vibranium and gave it to Strucker we're in a whole new kind of trouble." Chris said pointing to Klaue.  
"Where is he?" Steve asked Tony.

Once they knew where they were going, they were suited up and on the jet. Steve, Tony and Thor decided to go head on while Clint, Natasha and Chris went for the element of surprise. They had decided not to bring the Hulk in until it was a code green. Chris took her spot with her rifle on the level above mounting it on the railing and looking through the scope.  
"Stark is a sickness." Ultron said.  
"Junior, you're gonna break your old man's heart." Tony said landing in front of him.  
"If I must."  
"No one has to break anything." Thor said.  
"Have you ever made an omelet?" Ultron asked.  
"Mr. Stark. Comfortable? Like old times?" Pietro asked Tony.  
"This wasn't my life." Tony said looking around.  
"You two can still walk away from all of this." Steve said trying to reason.  
"We plan to." Wanda said.  
"We understand you've been hurt."  
"Captain America. Pretending to live without a war." Ultron said.  
"If you want peace then let us keep it." Thor said to Ultron.  
"You confuse peace with quiet."  
"What's the vibranium for?" Tony asked.  
"Glad you asked." Ultron said before blasting Tony into the wall.  
Chris was ready to fire on Wanda when she heard Klaue's men coming up behind her. She dismounted her rifle and began firing at the men. Once she was out of bullets there, she dropped the gun and pulled out her pistol.  
Chris was looking around for Steve when her mind went blurry.  
All the sudden she was there. In the middle east. Holding that gun up to her soldier's head.  
"Don't make me do it." Chris cried.  
"You'll do it, or you'll die."  
"No!" Chris yelled and pulled the trigger.  
Her men fell to the ground. Blood pooling beneath her feet.  
"Now him."  
Chris turned and saw Steve.  
"No. Never."  
"Fine." She watched as they shot him multiple times.  
All the sudden Chris was being carried. She opened her eyes and saw Steve carrying her onto the jet. Everyone was there. He set her down on a seat and then sat next to her. Chris moved and sat as far away from Steve as possible. She couldn't do that right now.  
"The media loves you guys. Everyone else not so much. Banner's arrest is still up in the air." Hill said over the speakers.  
"Stark Relief Foundation?" Stark asked.  
"Already there. How is everyone?" Hill replied.  
"We took a hit. We'll shake it off like we always do."  
"Stay in stealth mode and away from here. Until we find Ultron there's not much else we can do."


	11. Chapter 11

The sun was starting to come up when they landed. They were going to be hiding out at Clint's house. Chris had recognized it from when she had helped him.  
Steve had stayed away from her all night. He could tell it wasn't something the Chris wanted to talk about. They all followed Clint up the steps of the house.  
"Where are we?" Thor asked.  
"A safe house." Tony replied.  
"I hope so." Clint said and opened the door.  
Everyone walked inside and Chris closed the door behind everyone.  
"Honey, I'm home." Clint said.  
Laura came around the corner and was surprised to see everyone.  
"Sorry I didn't call ahead." Clint apologized and kissed Laura.  
"She's got to be an agent." Tony said.  
"Guys this is my wife, Laura" Clint smiled and Chris walked over to hug Laura.  
"Hi, Laura." Chris said hugging her.  
"Oh Chris, you look like you've been to hell and back."  
"I think I was."  
There were footsteps and soon Lila and Cooper were coming around the corner.  
Clint hugged and kissed them.  
"Those are smaller agents." Tony said pointing to the kids.  
"Auntie Nat, Auntie Chris!" Lila yelled and both kids hugged them.  
"Sorry for barging in on all of you." Steve said.  
"We would have called ahead, but we didn't know you existed." Tony said.  
"Yeah, Chris and Fury set this up for me when I started. It was kept off SHIELDs files and I would like it to stay that way." Clint smiled.  
"How's little Natasha?" Tash asked Laura.  
"She's Nathaniel." Laura said.  
"I win, pay up." Chris said holding out her hand to Tash.  
She pulled out a twenty and then bent down.  
"Traitor." She said with a smile.  
Toast popped and Thor walked out. Chris let Steve handle that on his own.  
"I have a feeling that I'm gonna need the room in the barn." Chris said looking at Clint.  
"You never told Steve, did you?" Clint asked.  
"It wasn't my secret to tell."  
"What about the other thing?"  
"You are the only person that really knows what happened there. I couldn't imagine what he'd think of me if he knew."  
"Well better he finds out from you."  
Chris walked up to her normal room and sat on the bed.  
"I brought you some clothes." Laura said as she walked in.  
"Thanks." Chris smiled and grabbed them from Laura's hands.  
"Laura, can I ask you something?"  
"Anything."  
"Do you tell Clint everything? Even if you know it could make him think of you differently?"  
"That's what being married is. Being able to share everything so you don't have to do it alone."  
"Thank you, Laura. For everything."  
Laura nodded and walked out. Chris was changing when Steve came into the room.  
"Those scars remind me of everything that you have been through that makes you as strong as you are." Steve said as Chris pulled the shirt over her head.  
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Clint."  
"I didn't know you guys had known each other for so long."  
"Fury wanted to test my loyalty. So, he set me up with the job of finding this new recruit a home and making sure that it was always safe and never in SHIELD's files. That's how I met Clint and Laura. They're good people and they deserve this."  
"Chris, I'm not mad. It wasn't your secret to tell."  
Steve changed and went to leave.  
"Steve."  
"Yeah?"  
"You know I love you, right? No matter what?"  
"I know. I love you too."  
He walked over and kissed the top of her head before going outside.  
Chris watched out the window as Steve and Tony chopped wood. She could have stood there for hours.  
There was a knock on the door and Clint walked in. He walked over to the window and stood behind her placing his hands on her shoulders.  
"You know you're like the big brother I never had. Always so easy to talk to. So easy to work with. You have always been there for me even when I couldn't be there for myself."  
"That's what big brothers are for. They're also there to tell you that it's time to tell him. You can't go into this fight with that weighing on your chest. Love ya sis." He said and kissed the top of her head before walking away.  
Chris saw Steve rip apart a chunk of wood with his hands and decided that now was as good a time as any. She went outside to see Tony walking towards the barn and Steve still working on wood.  
"Steve can we talk?" Chris asked.  
"Yeah, what's wrong?"  
"There's just something I need to tell you."  
Steve took her hand and they walked out into the woods surrounding the house.  
"Chris, what's going on?" Steve asked stopping and letting go of her hand.  
"I haven't been completely honest with you."  
"About."  
"Remember our first date? When I told you about how I got out of the military?"  
"Yeah?"  
"I didn't tell you the whole truth. To be honest the only people that know the whole truth are the general and Clint."  
"Clint?"  
"I told him long before I met you. This was something Fury didn't even know, or if he did he didn't inform me. The men that were with me when I was taken in Iraq, they didn't die right away. What better way to torture a commanding officer than to force her to kill them all. That's what they did. They forced me to hold a gun to their heads and pick between my life and theirs. They watched me shoot them. The last thing they heard were my cries as my survival instincts forced me to pull that trigger. Four times. I killed all four of my men. I watched them be tortured along with me and then placed at my feet only to be shot minutes later by their commanding officer that was too weak to think of anyone but herself and her family. I ate, slept, and bled with these men and in the end I took their lives."  
Chris couldn't look at Steve. She stared at the ground letting the tears fall to the ground.  
"Chris." He said softly as he lifted her face to look at him.  
"I was scared you'd see me as the monster I am."  
"Chris, you are not a monster. You fought for your life and I am so happy you did. Because if you hadn't I never would have met you and I'd be so lost I wouldn't know which way was up. I love you. All of you. Even your dark parts. It's because of those parts that you are the extraordinary person you are today. I love you so much." Steve said pulling her into a hug.  
"I love you too."  
Steve pulled away and kissed Chris. Not the quick kisses they had been giving each other lately, but that kind of kiss where you feel that person's love and affection seep into your body and warm you to your core.  
"Let's get back to the team." Steve smiled and held her hand as they walked back up the steps and into the house where a familiar voice was echoing around.  
"Nice of you to finally join us." Fury said as he looked at them.  
They all situated themselves in the kitchen area to hear what Fury had to say. Chris sat at the table across from Tash and Steve stood behind her with one hand on her shoulder.  
"Ultron took you all out so that he could have more time to set up. My contacts say he's building something. With all the vibranium he took from Klaue it's more than one." Fury explained.  
Chris smiled at Lila as she handed her a picture of her and Steve with a heart around it.  
"Thank you sweetheart." Chris said kissing her forehead.  
"What about Ultron?" Steve asked.  
"He's easy. He's everywhere. He multiplying faster than a rabbit. We still don't know his plans." Fury said cutting his sandwich in half.  
"Is he still trying to go after launch codes." Tony asked.  
"Yes, but with no headway."  
"I cracked the Pentagon's firewall in high school."  
"I talked to our friends at Nexus about that."  
"Nexus?" Steve asked.  
"It's the world internet hub, honey. Every bite of data flows through there." Chris said rubbing his hand.  
"What did they say?" Clint asked.  
"He's fixated on the missiles, but the codes are constantly being changed by an unknown." Fury said.  
"We might need to get into Oslo." Tony said.  
"Well, as nice as it is having you here, I was hoping you'd have more than that." Tash admitted.  
"I do. I have you guys." Fury said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I used to have eyes everywhere, and ears where I didn't have eyes. Back then you guys had all the fancy tech and everything a kid could dream of. Now we have nothing but wit and will. Ultron says you are all that stand between him and his mission, but what he may not realize is his mission is global destruction. Everything laid down in a grave. So, you need to stand and outwit this platinum bastard."  
"Babe, he said a bad word." Chris said looking up at Steve.  
"You're lucky you're cute." He said rubbing her shoulders.  
"What does he want?" Fury asked.  
"To become better than us. He's building bodies." Steve said coming to a realization.  
"The human form is inefficient. Biologically we're outmoded, but he keeps using it." Tony said.  
"You two failed at having him protect the human race." Tash said looking between Tony and Bruce.  
"They don't need to be protected, they need to evolve. It's what he said that first night. He's going to evolve." Bruce said looking up from the ground he had been intently staring at.  
"How?" Chris asked.  
"Has anyone talked to Dr. Cho?"  
"He's making a body." She realized.


	12. Chapter 12

They started moving around and got their uniforms on.  
"Natasha, Clint, and Chris will come with me." Steve said attaching his shield to his back.  
"I'll hit Nexus and meet you." Tony said.  
Both Tony and Steve came around the corner and Chris walked out with them.  
"If Ultron is building a body he will be more powerful than all of us." Chris said joining the conversation.  
"I miss the days where I was the weirdest thing science ever created." Steve sighed.  
"I'll take Banner to the tower. Can I borrow Ms. Hill?" Fury asked joining them.  
"Shouldn't I be the one asking for permission?" Tony asked Fury.  
"What are you gonna do?" Steve asked Fury.  
"Not sure yet. Hopefully something dramatic." Fury smiled and walked out.  
They all loaded in the jet and made their way to Korea.  
"Chris and I will unload further away and make our way to the building. Stay close." Steve said and Clint lowered the jet to let Chris and Steve off.  
"So when this is over we're getting married. I know marriage isn't that important and as long as you're with the person you love it's just a piece of paper, but I want to be married to you in every way. Legally, spiritually, emotionally. I love you, and I want everyone to know that you're mine, and I'm yours."  
"I want nothing more than that." Steve smiled and kissed Chris.  
They were in the building and found Dr. Cho on the ground bleeding out and the rest of her scattered about as well. Steve went to Dr. Cho and Chris checked the rest of the staff. She could hear Dr. Cho speaking to Steve.  
Chris walked back and Steve looked at her. He shook his head and sighed.  
"Did you guys get that?" Steve asked Clint and Tash.  
"Yes, sir." Clint said.  
"There's a private jet across town about to take off." Tash informed them.  
"There's a truck from the lab. It's right below you Cap. On the loop. Three with the cradle and one in the cab. I can take out the driver now." Clint explained.  
"No, that truck crashes that gem will level the city. We need to draw Ultron out." Steve said.  
Steve and Chris climbed the ladder to the bridge.  
"Pick up Chris. I'll take the truck."  
"You're funny." Chris said and jumped off the bridge as the truck went below before Steve could stop her.  
Steve was right behind her.  
Steve climbed down to open the door, but Ultron blasted it open. Steve swung around to get inside, but the doors were hit again and came flying off. One was dragging behind on the ground and Steve was holding on to that.  
"He's unhappy. I'm gonna try to keep it that way." Steve said.  
"You're no match for him Cap." Clint said.  
"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Steve replied quickly as he continued to climb without getting shot.  
Chris hooked her feet in to a bar up above and leaned over the edge trying to shoot at the Ultron's in the trailer. He tried to shoot at her but she pulled herself up and he barely missed her. He hit Steve and sent him into the windshield of the car behind. He used the truck coming up next to him to vault him on top of the truck to reach Chris.  
"You okay?" He asked her.  
"Yeah, you?"  
Steve nodded and Ultron showed up behind them.  
"Do you know what's in that cradle? The chance for change, and that terrifies all of you." Ultron said and shot at them.  
Steve used his shield to protect both of them.  
"It's not a comfort." Steve said throwing his shield.  
The shield was coming straight for Chris' face and she leaned back not realizing she was on the edge. She fell off and hit the hood of the car next to the truck. Chris heard the jet and turned to see Tash dropping on a bike. Chris held out her hand and she grabbed it swinging her on the back.  
"Cap dropped his shield. Gotta go pick it up, like always." Chris said.  
"On it." She said. They drove by and Chris leaned down grabbing it. They came off a street and slid under the trailer. Chris took the shield and threw it up to Steve.  
"Get me to the back." Chris said and Tash slowed down a little allowing her attempt at getting inside. Ultron blew a chunk out of the road and Chris jumped into the back just as Tash slammed on the breaks. Chris saw Steve go flying into another car and this time lifted it off the ground beneath it causing it to flip. Chris was too busy dealing with the other two. She was too scared to damage the cradle that she didn't use her gun. Instead she grabbed her knives and tried to fight off the two of them. They were stronger, faster, and made of metal. She was also out numbered. She was lying on the floor of the trailer almost completely unconscious.  
"Clint, help Chris. draw off the guards." Tash said over the comms.  
Clint shot at the Ultron on top of the truck and they both left her alone with the cradle.  
"Steve I need you to keep them occupied while I work on the cradle." Chris said.  
"What do you think I've been doing?" Steve asked.  
Chris was trying to override the animation process, but to no success. Just then something happened, and she was sliding towards the back of the trailer as it got further away from the ground. She grabbed one of the cables to keep from falling out and used it to get back to the cradle.  
"The package is airborne and I have a clear shot." Clint said.  
"Negative, I'm in the truck." Chris said.  
"What the hell are you doing in the truck?" Clint asked.  
"Just be ready to catch the package." Chris said and unhooked the cradle.  
"How do you want me to take it?"  
"You might wish you hadn't asked that."  
"I lost him. He's coming towards you." Steve said.  
"Chris, gotta go." Clint pressed.  
Chris cut the last cable and hopped on top riding it into the back of the jet. It made it safely, but Ultron grabbed Chris' foot pulling her out of the jet.  
"Chris!" She heard Clint yell. "Cap, do you see Chris?"  
"Where is she?"  
"She fell."  
"Get the package to Stark I'll get Chris." Steve said trying to keep the panic out of his voice. 

Chris woke up and looked around. She was in Ultron's lair.  
"I was hoping you'd wake up. I wanted to show you everything. I don't have anyone else to share this with anymore. I think about meteors a lot. How pure they are. They end things and then start them again. A fresh start for the world. I was meant to be beautiful. The world would look to the stars and see the hope I can bring. But because of you they'll look up in horror." Ultron said and then walked over to Chris. "You wounded me, but like man says what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."  
Chris backed away and he locked her in a cage. She looked around and saw some tech that she could use to make a telegraph. Thank god they all knew Morris Code. Chris began sending the coordinates hoping Clint would be looking for her.  
"Chris. Chris!"  
"Bruce?"  
Chris stood up to see Bruce coming around the corner.  
"Where's Steve?" She asked.  
"He's helping to clear out the city. We need to get you there."  
"Okay. I don't suppose you found a key." She smiled.  
"Yes I did." Bruce said holding up the gun. She stood back and he shot the lock.  
Chris opened the cell.  
"Alright let's go."  
"You're going. I can't be in a city where there's civilians."  
"Bruce, we're gonna need you. More civilians will die if you aren't there."  
"I can't lose my cool."  
"Bruce, you're one of my best friends," Chris said and she pushed Bruce in a hole, "But I need the other guy." She said and heard the growl.  
Hulk hopped out of the ground and gave her a smirk.  
"Let's go."


	13. Chapter 13

Chris screamed as she held on to Hulk as they jumped off the ground and towards part of the city rising from the ground. They crashed into the trees and Chris came loose.  
"This better make us even." Chris said standing up and cracking her back. "Go be the hero."  
Hulk ran off and she made her way towards town.  
She made it to the city happy she still had my knives. She saw the abandoned police station and ran in grabbing a gun and all the ammo she could find. Chris saw Steve fighting a bunch by himself and she ran in guns blazing.  
"Looks like you could use a little help." Chris smiled at him.  
"Thank God you're alive." Steve smiled back.  
They continued to fight until there were no more.  
"The next wave will hit any minute." Steve said to Chris. "Stark, what's the situation?"  
"It's not good. I can blow the rock once you guys are clear." Tony said.  
"I asked for a solution not an escape plan."  
"The impact radius is growing by the second. We need to make a choice."  
"Steve, if Tony can find a way to blow this rock..." Chris said looking at him.  
"Not until everyone is safe."  
"The lives up here versus the number of people down there. There's nothing to consider."  
"I won't leave this rock with one civilian on it."  
"I never said we should leave. There's worse ways to go. At least I'm here with you." Chris grabbed his hand and squeezed it.  
"Well your day is about to get better." Fury said over the comms.  
Chris smiled as she saw the helicarrier rise up into the sky.  
"She's a little dusty, but she'll get the job done."  
"Fury, you son of a bitch." Steve said.  
"Wow, you kiss Chris with that mouth?" Fury joked.  
"As a matter of fact he does." Chris smiled and Steve wrapped an arm around her shoulders.  
"This is SHIELD?" Pietro asked as the safety ships came out of the helicarrier.  
"What it's supposed to be." Steve answered.  
"Not so bad."  
"Let's get them loaded up." Steve said and they walked towards the ships helping people  
They continued to load people onto ship after ship.  
"Thor I have a plan." Tony said.  
"We're out of time. Their beginning to converge on the core." Thor said.  
"Avengers, let's get to work."  
Steve and Chris ran for the church. They came through the pillars and Chris fired off rounds into the heads of the robots.  
"What's the plan?" Chris asked.  
"If Ultron gets his hands on the core, we lose." Tony told them.  
"So just try not to let the million robots heading this way get touch the pillar."  
"Yep."  
"Is that the best you can do?" Thor yelled to Ultron.  
Ultron was suddenly joined by thousands more.  
"You had to ask." Steve sighed.  
"This is what I wanted. All of you versus all of me. How do you hope to stop me?" Ultron looked too pleased with himself.  
"Like Cap said, as a team." Tony said and Chris smiled at Steve.  
Hulk roared and the Ultrons all charged them.  
They made a circle around the core and took down any nonliving thing that came near it. Vision, Tony, and Thor were taking on the original Ultron. When Hulk sent him flying the rest tried to run.  
"They're leaving the city." Chris said reloading her gun with a new mag.  
"We can't let a single one go, Rhodey." Tony said.  
"On it." James said.  
"We need to go. The air is getting thin." Steve said.  
"Really?" Chris said trying to catch her breath.  
"You guys get to the boats. I'll sweep for stragglers."  
"What about the core?" Clint asked.  
"I'll protect it." Wanda said  
Everyone left except for Chris.  
"Please go to the boats."  
"No, you're stuck with me remember. Let's go. Plus, you need someone to watch your back."  
They searched the whole area and everyone was on.  
"Thor, I need you back at the church." Tony said over the comms.  
"That's the last of them." Chris said to Thor and Steve.  
"If this works, there's a high chance we don't walk away."  
"There's always a chance we don't walk away." Chris said to Tony while looking at Steve.  
Then shots were raining down on Them. Steve grabbed Chris and held her under him while he held his shield above them.  
Steve got up and looked down at Chris.  
"Chris, you're hit."  
She looked down and sure enough her abdomen was becoming darker. She placed her hand on it and it came away red.  
"Ow." Chris said with a small groan.  
Chris looked over to see Clint crouching by Pietro.  
"Go help them. I'll be okay." She said placing her other hand on his face and wiping away his tears.  
Steve helped carry Pietro to the ship then came back for her. He laid her down on the ground and that was when she blacked out.

Chris woke up in a hospital bed with Steve sitting right next to her. He was asleep with his head resting on the bed she was in.  
Chris placed a hand on his and he slowly woke up.  
"Hey." He said in his sexy I just woke up voice.  
"Hey. I see we aren't dead."  
"Tony and Thor blew up the city."  
"Are they-?"  
"They're alive. Wandering around here somewhere."  
"Pietro?"  
"Ultron killed him."  
"Everyone else?"  
"Accounted for. Except for Hulk. He took off in the jet and we haven't seen him since."  
"He always thought he was putting everyone in danger."  
"Well, you aren't and that's all that matters to me." Steve said kissing the back of her hand.  
"You're looking rather well." Fury said walking in.  
"What even happened to me?"  
"Just one bullet through the abdomen as Steve pulled you out of the way of the gun. Nothing Dr. Cho couldn't fix."  
"Good to know she's okay."  
"I'll let you two be. Hey, I want an invite to that wedding too."  
"Of course Fury." Chris smiled and he left.  
"I love you." Steve said squeezing her hand.  
"I love you too." Chris smiled.  
"I've got to go talk to Thor and Tony."  
"Okay."  
Steve stood up and kissed her forehead.  
Chris looked around and saw her uniform sitting on the bench next to her. She stood up and stretched out her sore muscles before slipping into the comfortable material. She opened the door and walked out. Chris had never been here before, but after a little wandering around she found Tash staring at a wall.  
"Is there some sort of picture I just can't see?" Chris asked and Tash turned with a smile.  
"Who authorized you to get out of bed?" She asked hugging her.  
"The only one able to. Me." Chris said and stared at the wall with her. "Steve told me about Bruce. He's an idiot."  
"Yeah."  
"We tend to fall for the idiots."  
Tash just laughed and Chris heard Steve scoff behind her.  
"Says the one who's supposed to be in bed." Steve said.  
"I feel fine."  
"So are we gonna get to work then?"  
"What do we have, Captain?" Chris asked.  
"We've got some hitters." Steve said handing them a tablet to share.  
"They look good." Tash said.  
"They're not a team."  
"We'll beat them into shape." Chris smiled.  
They walked into a room with War Machine, Falcon, Vision, and Wanda.  
"Hey, before we get too dedicated to this there's something we need to take care of." Tash said.  
"And that is?" Steve asked.  
"I believe you promised this lady a wedding."  
"That I did."


	14. Chapter 14

It was a few days later and Steve and Chris were getting married. Natasha had found a lake not too far away and decided that it would be perfect for their short ceremony and then Fury had promised them some leave while Tash whipped those new recruits into shape.  
Chris was looking in the mirror in the tent she was getting ready in. Tash walked in in a dress and some flats not wanting any heals to get stuck in the ground.  
"Wow, Chris, you look amazing." Tash said.  
"Thanks, I'm hoping Steve likes it."  
"You could walk out there in a trash bag and Steve would love it. As long as you walk down that aisle he'll be happy."  
"Thanks, Tash." Chris said and hugged her.  
"Well, come on. There's one really hot soldier in a suit waiting for you at the end."  
Chris laughed and nodded scared that she would cry if she spoke.  
Tash walked out and she stood there pacing back and forth outside the door. Chris had no one to walk her down the aisle. With both parents gone and my grandmother's extreme Alzheimer she was left to do this herself. Her dad would have wanted to be here, it would have been the only time she probably would have ever seen him cry.  
The bridal song began to play and Chris looked in the mirror one more time to make sure that her makeup hadn't smeared with her tears. Chris smiled at herself and then the doors opened to let her out. The second she saw Steve all thoughts of her parents were pushed to the back of her mind. Chris smiled at him and walked down the aisle towards him.  
He was smiling at her, but she could see the tears in his eyes. Chris stood across from him and he grabbed her hands.  
"We are gathered here today..." The priest said and Chris tuned him out and was just smiling at Steve.  
"You look gorgeous." He mouthed to her.  
"You look handsome." She mouthed back.  
"I love you."  
"I love you too."  
"I know you two have some words you would like to say to each other. Steve, would you go first?" The priest said catching their attention.  
"Yeah." Steve said pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket. "Chris, I know that I am the luckiest guy alive to call you mine. And after today the whole world will know that we love each other, but they will never know how much. Chris, the first time I saw you I knew that you were going to mean something to me, I just never knew you'd mean everything to me. You bring light into this world of darkness. No matter what happens I know you'll have my back. I love you up to the stars and beyond."  
"Chris." The priest said looking at her.  
"Steve, my grandmother's stories could never amount to how amazing you really are. The stories of you saving those men always made me want to meet you. But I never imagined I would. The day I walked into my grandmother's house and found you I was so star struck. I've always felt like I could tell you everything and I have always told you everything. You make me a better person, and for that I will always love you. You are my everything and nothing will change that."  
"Steve, will you repeat after me?"  
"I, Steve Rogers, take you, Chris Carter, to be my wife, my partner in life and my one true love. I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever. I will trust you and honor you. I will laugh with you and cry with you. I will love you faithfully. Through the best and the worst, through the difficult and the easy. What may come, I will always be there. As I have given you my hand to hold so I give you my life to keep so help me God." Steve said smiling at her.  
"Chris."  
"I, Chris Carter, take you, Steve Rogers, to be my husband, my partner in life and my one true love. I will cherish our friendship and love you today, tomorrow, and forever. I will trust you and honor you. I will laugh with you and cry with you. I will love you faithfully. Through the best and the worst, through the difficult and the easy. What may come, I will always be there. As I have given you my hand to hold so I give you my life to keep so help me God." Chris smiled at him.  
"I now pronounce you husband and wife, you may kiss your lovely bride."  
Steve's smile got even wider and then he leaned down to kiss her. He placed his hand on the back of her neck and the other on her waist.  
"I now pronounce you man and wife." The priest said and people started clapping.  
They pulled apart and smiled at each other.  
Steve grabbed her hand and they walked down the walkway.

The next day they were on their way to Finland.  
"Of all the places to go you pick Finland in the winter." Steve said sitting in the airplane seat next to her.  
"Oh, come on. Glass igloo in Saariselka, Finland. Lying together at night watching the northern lights dance above us. What could be better?"  
"A room on the water in the Maldives."  
"But no northern lights. All my years as an agent traveling the world and I've never seen the northern lights. For our five year we can go to the Maldives."  
"I'll hold you to that." Steve smiled and kissed her.  
"I love you, Mrs. Rogers." Steve said still looking at her.  
"I love you too, Mr. Rogers." Chris said and squeezed his hand.

Steve had gone out on a mission and Chris was left at "home" to make sure the "kids" kept up with their training. One of the perimeter sensors was triggered and Chris sent Sam to check it out.  
"What's going on, Sam?" She asked over the comms.  
"I don't see anything, Chris." He said back to her.  
"Maybe it was just a fly." She said and shrugged looking at Natasha.  
"Wait. I can see you!" He yelled to whoever it was.  
"Who the hell would be stupid enough to try to break into the Avenger's base?" Chris asked Tash.  
"Someone really stupid or desperate."  
"I've located the breach and I'm bringing him in." Sam said.  
"We'll prepare containment." Chris confirmed and Tash walked away.  
"Breach is an adult white male with some sort of shrinking tech." Sam said obviously not catching him yet.  
"Shrinking tech? I should work on something like that." Chris said kinda to herself not realizing the comms were on.  
"Chris, focus." Sam said.  
Chris was watching Sam fight a man that was constantly shrinking and growing.  
Sam was heading for one of the bay doors that closed behind him.  
"Falcon, report? Have you caught the breach?" She asked.  
"Negative, but he's here somewhere." Falcon responded.  
Suddenly Sam came crashing out of the door flying around like crazy.  
"He's inside my pack." Sam yelled over the comms.  
Chris sighed and shook her head before dropping it into her hands.  
Chris looked up and Sam was standing there with his goggles off and looking around confused.  
"It's really important that the captain never finds out about this." Sam said to her.  
"You know he will." She sighed.  
Sam came in and placed the pack down on the table for Chris to look at.  
"Can you try not to tell Cap?" Sam asked her again.  
"You know we tell each other everything and even then, he'd want to know why I was complaining about fixing the internal wiring of your pack and why it's broken in the first place." Chris said with a smile.  
"He's gonna give me so much crap and make me do more exercises."  
"Well, I'll beat him to the punch. Five miles then meet me in the sparing room. You get an hour of training with me."  
"You know I'm going to want payback on this Scott, right?"  
"You know you're down to 29 minutes and 43 seconds until sparing. If you're late I'm tripling everything."  
Sam shook his head with a smile and then ran off to go run his miles.


	15. Chapter 15

The team was in Lagos with Natasha, Wanda, and Sam. They were going after Rumlow. Wanda and Chris were sitting at a café outside of the police station.

"What do you see?" Chris asked Wanda.

"Beat cops. A small station on a quiet street. It seems like an easy target." Wanda said.

"ATM on the south corner of the block." Steve said into their ears from his observation post up in an abandoned apartment.

Steve decided to stay hidden because his uniform tends to draw more attention than everyone elses.

"That means?" Chris asked Wanda.

"Cameras." She replied.

"Good. The cross streets are both one ways."

"The escape routes will be limited."

"Rumlow isn't scared to be seen and he doesn't worry about making a mess as he tries to get out. There's a range rover up the block." Steve said.

"The red one." Chris said looking over at it.

"It's cute." Wanda said

"It's also bulletproof, Wanda." Steve said.

"Which means private security, which means guns." Natasha said from her table a few over from Wanda and Chris'.

"You guys know that I can move things with my mind." Wanda said taking a sip from her coffee.

"In this line of work, you need to constantly be aware of your surroundings, and always looking over your shoulder." Chris said stirring her tea.

"Has anyone ever told you ever told you, you're paranoid, Natasha." Sam said into their ears from his position.

"No, why? Did you hear something?" Natasha said with a smile.

"Stay focused. This is the best lead we've had on Rumlow in months." Steve said.

"If he sees us coming we know he'll engage. With him hating us and all." Sam said with a dry chuckle.

"Sam, tag that garbage truck."

"Oh, I love this improvement." Chris said with a smile.

"Yeah, anyone ready to tell me why Sam needed a new pack?" Steve said and Chris could hear the smile.

"Come on Cap, stay focused on the mission." Sam replied and the girls let out small laughs.

They all focused again and waited for Sam's scan of the garbage truck.

"The truck is at max weight and the driver is packing." Sam said.

"They're going to use it as a battery ram." Natasha said.

"Move now." Steve said.

"What?" Wanda asked.

"The police aren't the target." Steve said.

"The Institute for Infectious Diseases." Chris said and the girls sprang from their spots at the café and started running.

"Body armor, AR-15s, Seven hostiles." Steve reported being the first one there.

"Five." Sam said.

Wanda flew herself there while Natasha and Chris were still running.

"That's not even fair." Chris said to Natasha watching her fly away.

"Seriously." Natasha said smiling at her.

"Four." Sam said counting down the hostiles.

Natasha and Chris grabbed bikes to make it the rest of the way to the institute.

"Rumlow has a biological weapon." Steve said as they were reaching Rumlow's transport at the back.

"We've got it." Chris responded.

Natasha skidded to a stop and used her bike to take out one of the hostiles. Chris jumped off of her bike and ran for three of the assailants. She back kicked one in the chest knocking him into the other. She grabbed the other one's mask and pulled it off using it to hit him in the face. He fell down unconscious while the other two got up. Chris pulled off her belt and wrapped it around one of their necks and pulled tight while she kicked the other one. He tried to shoot her, but she swung his friend in front of her to use as a shield. He fell and she roundhouse kicked the shooter knocking his head into the car leaving him unconscious. Another came up behind Chris and tried to punch her. She turned grabbed his wrist with one hand and then his shoulder with the other before flipping him over and punching him in the throat. She ran for the back of the truck and as she rounded the corner she was clotheslined by Rumlow. Chris landed on the ground and Rumlow grabbed her hair and pulled her up. She tried to punch and kick him, but he either blocked it or his body armor absorbed the blows. She finally landed an uppercut to his face. He grabbed her head and slammed it against the side of the truck and then forced her inside with two other guards. He pulled the pin out of a grenade and threw it inside before closing the door. The guards came at Chris and she kicked one's head, slamming it into the ceiling knocking him out and then got up disarmed the other one and put her back to the door and him in front of her to use as a shield from the blast. The grenade went off and blast the door open sending her out onto the grass. Chris rolled on the ground coughing and Natasha ran over to her.

"Go." Chris groaned out and she ran after the other AFV Rumlow was in.

"Sam, he's in an AFV heading North." Steve strained to say.

"Got it." Sam said.

Chris got to her feet and ran along the building to Steve.

"You okay?" She asked seeing him slowly getting up.

"Yeah. Never better. You?"

"Had better days. That's for sure." She smiled at him and ran with him towards the bikes her and Natasha rode in on.

They finally made it to the market where they ditched their AFV.

"There's four. They're splitting up." Sam said.

"I'll take the left." Natasha said.

"I'll take the right." Sam responded.

Steve and Chris looked around and saw the gear lying on the ground and inside the truck.

"They ditched their gear. It's a shell game now. Bet is one of them has the payload." Steve said.

Just as they started looking around something was thrown at Steve's shield and it stuck. Steve looked down at it and then threw it in the air. It exploded and then Steve was launched forward. Chris turned towards Rumlow and threw a punch at him. He grabbed her hand and forced her to the ground. She grabbed his arm with her other hand and wrapped her legs around his arm and held on tight. He lifted her up and slammed her to the ground. Chris' grip slipped a little but she still held on. The world was starting to get fuzzy, but that wouldn't stop her just yet. He did it again and her head knocked into the ground hard and she let go. He walked away from her and she struggled to get up. The world was spinning and blurry. People were crowding around her. Chris could hear Rumlow and Steve, but they were a little way away. She finally was able to stay on her feet for more than a few seconds and tried to find them. Everything was still spinning, and she was feeling like she had a concussion, but she still had to find Steve. Chris' vision was starting to get better. She could see Steve standing over Rumlow talking. All the sudden there was a bright flash, but it didn't spread. She could tell that Wanda was trying to keep it contained in the small area. Wanda tried to contain it, but she wasn't strong enough yet. She tried to send it up into the sky, but it didn't make it high enough and instead exploded next to a building. People were screaming and there was fire everywhere. Chris looked over at Wanda and she had covered her mouth in disbelief. Chris walked over to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

"Sam, we need Fire and Rescue on the south side of the building. We gotta get up there." Steve said to everyone.

"Wanda, come on. We've gotta help those that we can." Chris said to her.


	16. Chapter 16

They did what they could and went back home. In the jet, Chris got a chance to look over her wounds. There was a large bump on the back of her head where Rumlow had slammed her down, and a large gash on the inside of her thigh where the blade hidden in his gloves had cut her. She pulled out the bandages and began wrapping her leg.

"You know you should clean that out first." Steve said quietly.

"I will when we get back to base." She said without looking up at him.

"What about your head?"

"I'll have the on-site doctor check for a concussion."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Now I know something is wrong."

"We can talk about it later. I'm exhausted."

"Well, you aren't falling asleep until they check you for a concussion."

"I know."

They finally made it back and Chris didn't talk to Steve or anyone before going to the medical bay. They checked her for a concussion and then cleaned out the cut on her thigh before wrapping it. She pulled on a pair of sweat pants and made her way back to her and Steve's room. Chris laid down on the bed and looked at her wedding picture on the bedside table.

"Wanna talk about it yet?" Steve asked from the doorway into the room.

"There's nothing to talk about. The mission was a failure. We got Rumlow, but we killed all those people." Chris said refusing to look at him.

Steve walked over to her side of the bed and sat down. He rubbed her side as he looked down at her.

"We did what we could. If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I never saw the bomb. He said 'Bucky' and I froze. I couldn't think straight. Next thing I knew he was blowing himself up."

"This isn't Wanda's fault. She has to know that. She was trying to save all the people in the market. Including you."

"I know."

"She just isn't strong enough yet. I failed her. I don't know how to train her. I can give her meditation and strength and hand to hand, but I don't know her abilities and I don't know how to teach her to use them."

"None of us do, but you're her mentor. She trusts you. You can't give up on her. And you can't beat yourself up over this."

"None of us can. We did what we could." Chris said and grabbed his hand.

"I love you." Steve said and leaned down to kiss her.

"I love you too." Chris said and squeezed his hand.

Steve got up to walk out.

"Wait, come back here. Come cuddle with your wife while she naps." She said giving half a smirk.

Steve gave a small smile and laid down behind her wrapping his arm around her waist.

"What did they say about your head?" Steve asked before she fell asleep.

"I'm fine. But I should probably not take another blow to the head anytime soon."

"Well, we'll try to avoid that." Steve smiled and kissed the top of her head.

After waking up Chris turned on the news hearing about the Wakandan people who had died during an outreach program in Lagos. She quickly turned off the TV, but still heard it playing is the other room.

Chris walked out into the hall and saw it playing on Wanda's TV as she watched it. Chris reached out and grabbed her remote turning off the TV and she sighed.

"It's all my fault." Wanda said not looking at Chris.

"You know that's not true." She said walking in and sitting next to her.

"They're all blaming me."

"You're blaming yourself, Steve is blaming himself, I'm blaming myself. The real person to blame is the man who blew himself up. You saved all those people in the market, and they would be blaming us if you didn't do what you did. But, you saved my husband and that's what is important at this moment. People died and it's on all of us, but we are all safe and we saved as many as we could." Chris said rubbing her back.

Wanda nodded and Vision came through the wall.

"Vis, we talked about the door." Wanda said to him.

"Yes, but I saw the door was open so I just assumed it was okay. Captain Rogers wanted me to tell Mrs. Rogers that Stark was here." Vision said looking at Chris.

"Okay, I'll be right there." She said and smiled at him as he walked out.

"I will use the door." Vision said walking towards it.

"Oh, and he brought a guest." Vision said turning back to Chris at the door frame.

"Do you know who it is?" She asked.

"The secretary of state." Vision said and walked out.

Chris sighed and looked at Wanda.

"Come on, he'll want to talk to you too." She said standing up and walking out with Wanda behind her.

Chris walked into the conference room and saw Steve, Tony, Brody, and Vision sitting there.

"Secretary Ross, it is good to see you again." Chris said giving him a handshake and a smile.

"You may not think so here in a few." Ross said gesturing to the seat beside Steve.

Chris sat down and looked at Steve, giving him a small smile.

"You know, five years ago I had a heart attack. Was playing golf and I dropped mid backswing." Ross said demonstrating his swing. "I was the best round of my life because after thirteen hours of surgery and a triple bypass I found something that I had never had before. Perspective. The world owes the avengers for everything you have done for us, but while many see you as heroes' other see you as vigilantes."

"What word would you use to describe us, Mr. Secretary?" Tash asked.

"Dangerous. Isn't that what you would call a US-based group of enhanced individuals who ignore sovereign borders who inflict their will on whoever they choose, and seem unconcerned with the damage they leave behind?"

Ross stepped aside, and the screen began showing all the damage that had been left by the avengers in the last few years.

Last was Lagos and Steve looked over at Wanda before kindly telling Ross to shut it off.

"For the past few years you've operated with unlimited power and no supervision. And the governments of the world will no longer tolerate it. Our solution is the Sokovia Accords. It is approved by 117 countries and states that the avengers will no longer be a private organization, but instead will operate under the supervision of a United Nations panel and only when and if that panel deems it necessary." Ross said.

"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place, and I believe that we have done that." Steve defended.

"Where are Thor and Banner now? If I had lost a couple thirty megaton nukes you can bet your ass there would be consequences." Ross said to Steve.

"But these aren't nukes we're talking about. These are people. One happens to be a god that has his own realm to run. You wouldn't make the president live in the middle of the Sahara Desert and tell him to run his country from there." Chris defended.

"And Banner?" Ross asked.

Chris looked at Tash and then looked down at her hands.

"The world runs on compromises and I promise you that this is the middle ground." Ross said to everyone.

"There are contingencies, right?" Brody asked.

"In three days the UN will meet in Vienna and there they will ratify the accords. You can talk it over." Ross said and began to leave.

"And if we come to a decision you don't like?" Tash asked.

"Then you'll all be forced to retire." Ross said and left.

They moved the meeting out of the conference room and up to the living area where everyone would be more comfortable.

Everyone began arguing while Steve read over the agreement and Tony just sat there in silence.

"I have an equation." Vision suggested silencing Sam and Rhodey.

"Oh great." Sam sighed and everyone turned to look at Vision.

"In the eight years since Mr. Stark decided to tell the world that he was the Iron Man the number of known enhanced persons has grown at an alarming rate. The number of world-ending events has also increased." Vision says looking at everyone

"So, you think it's our fault?" Steve asked.

"I'm saying that there is a possibility of causality. Our strength invites challenge. Those challenges lead to conflicts and in return those conflicts lead to catastrophes."

"Case closed." Rhodey says and looks at Sam.

"Tony, you're being awfully quiet." Natasha pointed out and Tony looked at her.

"He's already made up his mind." Steve said with a slight sigh.

"You know me so well." Tony said and stood up to walk into the kitchen. "Actually, I've just got a headache. That's all, just pain." Tony said and tried to get a cup of coffee.

Chris sighed and placed her hand on Steve's knee trying to comfort him no matter how much she agreed with both sides of the argument. Tony placed his phone down and it projected a picture of an African American boy.

"That's Charles Spencer. Great kid. Computer engineering degree, with a 3.6 GPA, he already had a job lined up for after graduation. But before he started, he wanted to see the world a bit. He didn't want to go to Vegas or Cancun, which is what I would have done. Instead he went to Sokovia to build sustainable housing for the poor. Maybe he was gonna make a difference, but now we'll never know because we dropped a building on him as we kicked Ultron's ass. There's no decision to be made. We need to be put in check! If we don't then we're no better than the guys we use to justify our actions." Tony lectured and everyone looked at him.

"Tony, we can't give up because someone died." Steve tried to reason.

"Who said that is what we're doing?"

"If we don't take responsibility for our actions then, we are. This document shifts the blame."

"That is so arrogant. This is the U.N. we are talking about. Not HYDRA, not SHIELD, not the World Security council." Rhodey said.

"No, but it's run by people with agendas and those agendas will change."

"And that's a good thing. I shut down my manufacturing of weapons after I realized what they could do to people if they fell into the wrong hands." Tony injected again.  
"Yes, but you made that choice by yourself. If we sign this then we are surrendering our right to choose. What if the panel sends us somewhere we don't believe we need to go? Or worse, what if they don't send us somewhere we need to go? We are not perfect, but I believe that the safest hands are still our own."

"If we don't agree to this now then they will force us later, and that will not be a pretty experience." Tony said and looked at Wanda.

"You think they'll come for me." Wanda said.  
"You know we'd protect you." Chris said looking at her.

"Maybe Tony is right, Steve. If we at least have one hand on the wheel, then we have some control." Chris said looking at him.

"What?" Steve said unable to believe that his own wife wasn't agreeing with him.

"I'm just saying that we have made some very public and destructive mistakes. We need to regain the world's trust, and this is the best way to do that."

"I'm sorry, did you just agree with me over Mr. Perfect." Tony said pointing to Chris.

"Now I really want to take it back." Chris said cringing at the thought of agreeing with Tony.

"Nope, no retracting."

Chris' phone buzzed and she looked down to see a text from the nurse that looked after her Grandma Peggy.

_She's gone. In her sleep. _Chris read and looked at Steve who had just received the same text.

"Excuse us." Chris said and got up and walked out with Steve following her.

"Chris," Steve started, but she just held up her hand.

"No, I cannot break down right now. I need to plan." Chris said quietly and walked into the bedroom to begin packing.

"I'll help you." Steve said and came up behind her to hug her.

"I can't believe she's gone. She was the only family I had left and now I'm all alone." Chris said beginning to tear up.

"You're not alone. I'm here with you. Always and forever, my love." Steve said and kissed the side of her head.

Chris turned around and hugged him, burying her face in his chest.

"I can't lose you, Steve. Not to the bad guys or the good guys." Chris said.

"You never will. I'm with you until the end."

"We need to go. She wanted to be buried in London. I need to be there to make the preparations." She said letting go of him and wiping her eyes.

"Okay." Steve said quietly and packed himself a bag with a suit and other things.


	17. Chapter 17

The day of the funeral came and Steve, along with other agents carried her grandmother down the aisle of the large and filled church. Chris could see Steve in the front with tears in his eyes as he carried the body of the woman he once loved and the grandmother of his wife. Sam sat with Steve in the rows while Chris sat up next to the podium where she would speak.

"And now I would like to invite her Granddaughter Christine Carter up to say a few words." The priest said and Chris walked over to the podium and stood up there looking at Steve for reassurance.

"Growing up in SHIELD not many people knew of my relation to my grandmother unless they somehow managed to put together the last names, but even then, Carter is a common last name and I could blow it off as coincidence. I didn't want people thinking my grandmother was the reason I was in SHIELD. Being her granddaughter, I got to hear all of her amazing stories when I went to her house. I always loved her Captain America ones. She would tell me how she knew she had finally found someone with such a pure heart that maybe, just maybe she could find love. Of course, the Captain and my grandmother never got that chance, but I remember the moment I told her that I was dating _The _Captain America and she was so happy. She grabbed my hand and told me, "He was the greatest adventure I ever went on, and now it's your turn to feel the love and compassion that man has for myself." She was right, as always. Grandma Peggy was the woman who took care of me in one of the darkest times of my life. She stood by me as I struggled with my parents' death. She forced me to finish school, and my training. She wanted me to be the best that I could be. And because of her I am able to stand before you today and tell you how this woman, this amazing and beautiful woman changed my life so that I would have the chance to save lives."

The service ended and everyone left giving Chris their condolences while Steve stood next to her. Sam stood over in the corner to offer them any support they may have needed.

Once everyone was gone Steve and Chris just stood in the aisle looking up at her casket and picture.

"You know, when I came out of the ice, I thought everyone I knew was gone. Then, I found your grandmother, and I was lucky to have her back."

"She was lucky to have you too." Chris said reaching out and grabbing his hand.

"And then there came you, and I thought that she had somehow known that everything was going to work out for us. That I was going to fit in because of you."

"You didn't need to fit in." She smiled and he returned it.

Steve puled on her hand and hugged her tightly.

Someone cleared their throat and they both looked back to see Natasha.

"Hey, I thought I'd come check on you." Natasha said placing a hand on Chris' shoulder.

"Thank you." Chris said and placed my hand on hers.

"Who all signed it?" Steve asked knowing that that was the other reason she was here.

"Tony, Rhodey, Vision."

"Clint?"

"He's retired."

"Wanda?"

"Still deciding. I'm off to Vienna for the signing. There's room on the jet. Staying together is more important than how we stay together."

"What are we all giving up to stay together?" Steve asked and Natasha sighed.

"I'm sorry, Tash. I can't sign it."

"I know that neither of you will."

"Then what are you doing here?" Chris asked.

"I thought you guys could use the support." She smiled and Chris nodded pulling her in for a hug.

Steve and Chris went back to the hotel with Sam while Natasha went to Vienna. The two of them were making their way down the hall when Sam and Sharon walked up to them.

"Steve, there's something you need to see." Sam said and they all rushed into their room and Sharon turned on the TV.

There they watched the live coverage of the attack on the accords. Seventy injured and twelve dead including Wakanda's King T'Chaka. There was a video of the news van and James was outside of it.

At the mention of Bucky, Chris looked at Steve and saw him shift uncomfortably.

"Time to go to work." Sharon sighed getting of the phone with her joint terrorism group.

The three of them rode with Sharon to Vienna but separated so Steve could check out the damage while Sharon ran the task force.

"I need to find Bucky." Steve said pulling on his jacket and grabbing his hat.

"Steve, if he did do this then he is not the Bucky that you know. He is the Winter Soldier."

"But if he didn't then the entire world will be after him for something he didn't do."

"Steve, please."

"I need to do this, Chris."

"Please just come back to me."

"I would never leave you."

"Make sure Tash is okay." Chris told Steve as he began to walk away.

"I will." He said kissing her forehead before walking to the scene while Sam and Chris stayed behind at a café.

"Beer?" Sam asked Chris.

"Water." She said and the bartender placed a water in front of her while Sam got a beer.

"Water?" Sam asks.

"I need a clear head right now. We both know Steve is going to be going a mile a minute."

"That's never stopped you from drinking before."

"Last time someone mentioned Bucky to Steve it ended up costing people their lives. I can't let that happen again."

"Okay." Sam said and took a sip of his beer.

A few minutes later Steve was walking up to the bar.

"Is she okay?" Chris asked.

"Yeah." Steve said with a slight nod.

"She told you to stay out of it?" Sam asked and Steve didn't reply. "She may have a point."

"He'd do it for me." Steve said.

"Maybe back in 1945, but now? I just want to make sure you realize what you're doing and who you're putting in danger."

"Tips have been pouring in since the footage when on the air. This is the only lead that seems solid." Sharon said passing Steve a file. "My boss is expecting me to do the briefing the moment I get back so that is all the head start you get."

"Thanks." Steve said not making eye contact with her.

"You have to hurry. We have orders to shoot on sight." Sharon said and walked away.

"Steve, maybe we need to talk about this." Chris said putting a hand on his arm.

"He's my best friend, Chris."

"And I'm your wife. I need to make sure you think about our future too."

"Everything will be fine." Steve said, and they went up to change and make a plan on how they were going to get to Bucky.


	18. Chapter 18

Bucky was supposedly seen in Bucharest, Romania. They found where he had been staying and Steve went in while Sam and Chris kept watch. Chris sat on a ledge with her sniper filled with tranquilizers and her scope, keeping an eye out for Sharon's people.

"Look out, Steve. German Special Forces are approaching from the South." Sam said and Chris swiveled to see the trucks coming down the road.

"Understood." Steve said and she could hear the sadness in his voice.

"Do you know me?" She heard over the comms and immediately knew he had found Bucky.

"You're Steve. I read about you at a museum." She heard Bucky respond.

"Germans set a perimeter." Chris said, but Steve didn't respond.

"I know you're nervous, but I know you're lying."

"I wasn't in Vienna. I don't do that anymore."

"They've entered the building." Sam said and Chris tensed, and Steve continued to talk to Bucky.

"The people who think you did are here now. They have orders to shoot." Steve told Bucky.

Chris looked through her scope to see them coming down onto the roof where Sam was and he started to fly away.

"They're on the roof. I'm compromised." Sam said and Chris sat up with my gun.

"I'll cover you." She said and began shooting at the agents.

"This doesn't have to end this way, Bucky." She heard Steve try to reassure him as she tried to cover Sam.

"It always does."

"Five seconds, tops." Chris said using her thermal scope to see that they were at the apartment door.

"You were the one that pulled me out of that river. Why?"

"Steve, you need to get out of there." She said.

"I don't know."

"Yes, you do."

"Steve!" She yelled as flash bangs went through the windows.

Chris did what she could to shoot the men repelling down the side of the building, but she eventually ran out of tranqs.

"Sam, I need a ride." She yelled and ran for an edge as they began shooting at her.

"Jump in three. One, two, three." Sam yelled and she ran off the edge of the building falling through the air.

"Got ya!" Sam yelled as he grabbed her out of the sky.

"There!" Chris yelled pointing to the rooftop where Bucky and another guy in all black were.

"I see him." Sam said and they dove for the rooftop.

Sam let her drop about three feet and she rolled on the ground getting up and running for the two men as Steve jumped onto the rooftop. A helicopter came out and began shooting at them and the guy in black just stood there staring at them as the bullets ricocheted off of him.

"Sam." Steve said, and Sam turned around to head for the helicopter.

Chris ran at the guy in black and jump kicked him knocking him away from Bucky. He stood up and looked at her before coming at her. Chris dodged all of his clawed hits until he kicked her into the ventilations. He ran after Bucky who was jumping off the edge of the roof to make it to the street to run. Steve followed after them and Chris just stood at the ledge looking down.

"These damn enhanced guys." She sighed before pulling out two knives and sliding down the side of the building the same way that the guy in black had. She saw a bike sitting on the side of the road and grabbed it pulling out her universal key and stuck it in the ignition. The bike roared to life and she followed the street to get to a ramp to make in underground like the rest of them.

"I can't shake this guy." Steve said as Chris rounded the corner to get underground where there was a blockade waiting.

"I've got you." Sam said and Chris tried to swerve through them all, but she hit a spike and her bike went flipping.

"Freeze." Two men yelled and pointed guns at her while two more cuffed her and took all of her weapons. They stood there with her as the concrete exploded behind Bucky and the man in black came out of the rubble swiping at his tire causing him to roll. Steve ran over the rubble and a car came rolling after him.

They were immediately surrounded and Rhodey landed aiming at Bucky, Steve, and the man in black.

Steve looked over to see Chris already in cuffs being shoved into a car and he placed is shield on his back.

"Congratulations, Cap. You're now a criminal." Rhodey said as they were all cuffed.

The man in black retracted his claws and took off his mask revealing it was Prince T'Challa. He was also taken into custody and placed in the transport van with them.

"Are you okay?" Steve asked holding her face in his hands seeing the light scrape near her hairline.

"I'm fine." Chris said and pushed his hands away before looking out the window.

"So, you're into cats?" Sam asked the prince.

"Sam." Steve said.

"A guy shows up dressed as a giant cat and you aren't curious?"

"The suit is vibranium?" Steve asked the prince.

"The Black Panther has defended the Wakandan people for hundreds of years. Passed from warrior to warrior. Now because your friend murdered my father I am also the king. So, I ask you as a warrior and a king, how long do you think you can protect him from the inevitable?" T'Challa asked glancing over his shoulder at Steve.

They were taken underground and unloaded in a loading bay. The four of them got out of the car while Bucky's holding cell was unloaded from the military truck.

"What will happen to him?" Steve asked Sharon and the other man standing beside her.

"The same that will happen to you. Psychological evaluation and deportation." The man in the grey suit said.

"And you are?" Chris asked.

"Everett Ross, the deputy task force's commander." He said with a sarcastic smile.

"What about a lawyer?" Steve asked and Chris rolled her eyes.

"Funny. Make sure all their weapons are in lock up." Ross said as people carried their suits and weapons away.

"If I see anyone flying that, I will not be a happy camper." Chris said as they carried the flacon wings away.

Ross and Sharon turned to walk after them, and they all followed suit.

"Since you are the Avengers we will be trusting that you do not need to be put in holding. We'll place you in an office. Do try to stay in it." Ross said as they walked across a sky bridge.

Tash dropped back to walk next to Chris.

"I thought you were gonna keep them from making things worse." Tash said to Chris and Steve took a quick glance at his wife.

"You know how they are." Chris said flatly while keeping her eyes forward.


	19. Chapter 19

They walked into a command center and Tony was on the phone.

"Don't break anything while we try to fix this mess." Natasha said walking away.

"There will be consequences. Of course, you can quote me on that. I said it, didn't I? Is that all? Thank you, sir." Tony said and hung up to walk over to them.

"I saw the footage of your apprehension, are you okay?" Tony asked placing his hands on Chris' shoulders.

"I'm fine." Chris said with a small smile.

"I told them to try to do this without harming anyone. Causing your bike to crash while you're on it isn't what I consider to be gentle." Tony said trying to make a joke.

"You were in a crash?" Steve asked concerned trying to put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her, but she just shrugged it off.

"Maybe you should have been protecting your wife, instead of your enhanced friend who can very obviously take care of himself."

Steve sighed, and Chris could feel him looking at her, but she couldn't bring herself to look at him.

"So, what are our consequences?" Sam asked.

"You all are being prosecuted."

"I won't be getting that shield back, will I?" Steve asked.

"Technically the shield and the wings are government property." Tash said as she and Tony walked away.

"That's just cold." Sam said shaking his head.

"It's warmer than a jail cell." Tony yelled back.

The three of them were escorted into a glass office in the middle of the room and locked in.

"Chris, what's going on?" Steve asked softly.

"Nothing." Chris said sitting down in one of the chairs.

"Don't lie to me. I know when things are bothering you. You can't look at me and you won't let me try to comfort you. What's going on?" Steve asked sitting in the chair next to her and faced her.

"I wouldn't need comforting if you hadn't done this. I wouldn't have been thrown from my bike if you hadn't done this. I wouldn't have a dislocated shoulder and possibly a bruise running up my side if you hadn't done this! Jesus, Steve! That man locked up downstairs is not the man you knew. That man is locked away in a deep dark hole and when he tries to claw his way to the surface the Winter Soldier just pushes him back down. I am your wife, Steve. Your fricken wife! And you are willing to throw away our marriage, that just started by the way, for a man that may not even exist anymore!" Chris yelled trying to show him how dumb he was being.

"Umm, can I get out of here?" Sam asked looking at Tash who was just staring at the couple through the glass.

"You're willing to risk your life, my life, and our child's life for the chance to have one more second with that man downstairs!"

"Please, I'm begging you." Sam said to Tash again.

"Do we really mean so little to you?" Chris asked sitting back down in her seat.

Tash walked over and unlocked the door allowing Sam to get out.

"Did you say child?" Steve asked just staring at the floor.

"I will follow you anywhere, but I need to be sure that you know you are never going to get my full support on this."

"Did you say child?" Steve asked again, but this time looking her in the eyes.

"I did. But I'm not sure if it's true." Chris said quietly while trying not to look him in the eyes.

"Then why would you say it?"

"I just haven't seen the doctor yet. It may be, or I could just be having some weird illness. I'm fairly certain, but without a test I can still go into the field."

"Chris, why didn't you tell me?" Steve asked, his face plastered with sadness.

"Because it wouldn't have changed anything. You still wouldn't have signed the accords. You still would have gone after Bucky. You still would be here in this situation. At least without you knowing I could have had your back."

"We need to get you to see a doctor." Steve said and looked past Chris to see Tash.

She nodded and unlocked the door to take Chris to the onsite doctor.

"Chris, you're smarter than this. What would you have done if you are pregnant and lost the baby?" Tash asked as they walked down the halls to the doctor.

"Then nothing would have changed." Chris said sadly.

"Chris, if you are pregnant, then you should be happy. So many people would be so happy to have the opportunity to have a child. Many people would be ecstatic to be having Captain America's child. And yet you aren't?"

"Tash, you know I can't deal with children right now. We're constantly having to save the world. I'm constantly scared that Steve won't come home from a mission. Do I want to raise a child in that kind of world? Where after each mission there's a chance that that child may not have one of their parents. And I could never ask Steve to give it up. I know he never could. I never could. It's who we are. That's why our relationship works."

"Well, if you are pregnant and, if after all this, you still have that baby you're gonna have to decide if you guys are willing to change and if you aren't then…we'll see."

"I know. Thank you for bringing me down here. Maybe the doctor could also pop my shoulder back into place."

"I'll make sure they check out all of your injuries." Tash said and opened the doctor's door.

"Sie ist verletzt. Luxiert schulter und prellung seite. Sehen Sie auch, ob sie schwanger ist." Tash said and the doctor nodded. (She is injured. Dislocated shoulder and bruised hip. Also, see if she is pregnant)

"Thank you." Chris said and got up on the table.

"I shall put the shoulder back in place first. I shall push on three." The doctor said and he grabbed her arm and shoulder.

"Okay." She said taking a deep breath.

"Three." He said and gave it a jerk putting it back in place.

Chris let out a small groan as she rolled it out.

"Now, I'll draw blood. Then, I will check the rest of your injuries." He said walking over to a locked drawer and pulling out a needle and blood vial.

He walked back over and Chris watched as he found a vein in the cubital fossa then punctured it to draw blood. He placed a cotton ball over the puncture and then had her place her hand over it before bending her arm. He labeled the biohazard bag and then tubed it off.

"Where is bruise?" He asked turning back to her.

Chris stood up carefully and turned to have her right side facing the doctor then pulled up her shirt and slightly pulled down on the waistband of her pants to show the bruise that stretched from just below the hip joint to her ninth right rib. It was purple and black suggesting that the bruise was very deep, and there was a possibility for broken ribs.

"I'll need to get x-ray. I shall get portable." He said and walked over to the other side of the room and grabbed the x-ray.

Chris laid down on the table and he slid a piece of lead underneath her and then stepped out of the room to capture the picture.

"I develop then come find you."

"Okay." Chris nodded and walked back to the control room.

She walked back into the glass box in the middle and over to Steve.

"What did he say?" Steve asked.

"They're looking at some images for my ribs."

"What about the baby?"

"They're interviewing Bucky." Chris said trying to change the subject.

They weren't allowed to listen, just watch as everyone outside the box listened. The door opened, and Sharon walked in casually to hand then a receipt for their weapons and gear.

"'Bird costume'?" Sam asked reading it over.

"I didn't write it." Sharon said throwing her hands up.

Then she wandered over to the intercom and turned it on, so they could listen to the interview.

Chris turned back and gave her a small smile in thanks.

"I am not here to judge you. Just ask some questions." The man interviewing Bucky said.

Steve and Chris turned back to the screen to watch the interview.

"Do you know where you are, James? I can't help you if you don't speak to me."

"My name is Bucky." He said, and Chris looked up to see Steve's face twitch slightly.

"He's still in there." Steve said quietly.

She let out a small sigh and walked over to sit in the chair with her head in her hands. The door opened, and a woman gave a file to Sharon. She looked at the label on it and then handed it over to Chris. She opened the file and saw her x-ray and test results.

Steve looked over the case file while she looked over her medical file.

"Why would they release a photo from the crime scene?" Steve asked looking at the photo that incriminated Bucky.

"I don't know. Maybe to have some help from the civilians?" Sharon said.

"Exactly, you set off a bomb, kill some people, get your picture put up and then there's seven billion people looking for him."

"Someone could have framed him, so they could find him." Chris said not quite paying attention to their conversation and instead reading over the results in front of her.

"We looked for him for two years and never found him." Sam said.

"But we didn't bomb the UN."

"But that wouldn't guarantee that whoever framed him would get to him. It guarantees that the task force would." Sharon said.

"He's in the task force." Steve said and looked at the screen.

"Steve." Chris said, and he took a quick glance at her.

She held out the paper and the x-ray and he took them. He quickly scanned them over while still listening to Bucky's interview.

"A broken rib and a positive pregnancy." Steve said quietly.

"Yeah." Chris replied just as quietly and took the sheets back.

"Go home."

"No."

"I can't protect you the entire time."

"I can protect myself."

They were arguing when the power went off. They all turned and looked at Sharon and she told them where Bucky was. They went off on a dead run hoping to find Bucky before it was too late.


	20. Chapter 20

They made it down there and there were dead soldiers everywhere. Chris picked up a gun and looked around for Bucky.

"Help me." The man that was interviewing Bucky struggled to say and Steve ran over to him.

"Steve."

"I know." Steve said and lifted him up off the ground before pinning him to the wall with his feet off the ground.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" Steve asked him.

Chris walked into the holding cell continuing to look for Bucky and his metal fist came flying at her head. Chris ducked just in time, so it would go through the concrete wall. She tried to hit him, but he blocked her blow. She pulled out the gun and aimed it at his head but was unable to fire before he knocked it out of her hand. He kicked her into the wall and then grabbed her neck and flipped her to the ground.

"Chris!" Steve yelled still holding up the man.

Steve let go of him and went after Bucky knowing he was the only one that could take his hits. Sam was pushed into the wall and left unconscious. Chris pulled herself up just as Steve caught Bucky's punch by the elevator. He tried to push him back, but Bucky just punched him through the elevator doors and Steve was gone.  
"Steve!" Chris yelled and tried to run for the elevator, but her head was slammed into the wall causing her to fall to the ground unconscious.

"Chris. Come on, Chris. We gotta wake up." Sam said urgently to shake Chris awake and she woke up and ran to the elevator. Chris looked down and saw Steve climbing up the shaft.

"Go!" Steve yelled, and Chris smiled before following Sam up the stairs after the man that had done this to Bucky.

"You get him, I'll get Bucky." Chris yelled after Sam as they split on the stairway.

Chris saw Natasha and Sharon taking turns going at Bucky. Bucky had thrown Sharon onto a table and now had Natasha pinned to another with his hand around her throat. Chris pulled out the gun she had and aimed a shot for his arm. She knew it would ricochet off, but at least he had let go of Tash. Then the prince ran up and decided it was his turn.

"Tash." Chris said and ran over to her knowing that the Prince wasn't her biggest fan either.

"I'm good." She said with a cough.

"What are you doing here?" Sharon said and grabbed Chris' hand to pull her away from the fight.

"I'm stopping Bucky from killing you two." Chris defended.

"You are pregnant. Get out of here." Sharon said trying to push her away.

"No, the prince will kill him."

"We will make sure he doesn't."

They all turned to see how the fight was going and saw that T'Challa was standing there looking for Bucky who had disappeared.

"You two should go look for him."

"And you?" Tash asked.

"You guys are right. I need to get away from the action." Chris said and shook my head.

"Be careful. I'll see you at the compound after all of this is over." She said and hugged her.

"Yeah." Chris said and watched as they walked away.

She walked towards the door and suddenly Sam had a hold of her arm.

"Come on." Sam said and led her to a warehouse where Steve and Bucky were.

Chris saw Steve and ran over to him to hug him.

"Are you okay? Is the baby okay?" Steve asked.

"I'm fine so I'm guessing the baby is too. Bucky?"

"He's over here. He was knocked out when the helicopter went into the river." Steve said and led her over to Bucky.

"Please tell me you weren't on the helicopter."

"Maybe."

Chris sighed and rolled her eyes walking away.

"Keep an eye on him." Chris heard Steve say to Sam before jogging after her.

"What's wrong?" Steve asked.

"Are we ready for this?" Chris asked looking up at him with sad eyes.

"Ready for what?"

"Parenthood? You're falling off of helicopter pads into water, fighting with enhanced individuals. We're constantly chasing terrorists and saving the world. That's a dangerous world to be having kids in. Are we ready to give up this life for children?"

"Who said we'd have to give up this life?"

"We can't have a child and know that one day we could not come home from a mission. Leaving that child without one or both of us."

Steve didn't say anything.

"We either have to give up the child or the life. And I don't think you could give up the life."

"Who said that I wouldn't give up the life?"

"Me, because I know you. You can't sit back and watch someone get bullied. Even if it means saving yourself or your family. It would drive you crazy."

"And you can?"

"If I knew it would keep my family safe, I believe so."

"Then know that I can too."

"Hey guys." Sam said, and they walked over to see Bucky waking up.

"Steve?" Bucky asked looking at Steve.

"Which Bucky is it this time?" Steve asked.

"Your mom's name was Sarah. You would wear newspapers in your shoes to make you look taller." Buck said with a chuckle.

"You can't read that in the museum." Steve said.

"And like that we trust him?" Chris asked skeptically.

"What did I do?" Bucky asked.

"Enough." Steve said.

"You knocked Sam out. Threw me over your shoulder and to the ground. Knocked me out after that. And dropped Steve down an elevator shaft. Oh, don't forget almost killed Tony, Natasha, and Sharon." Chris said making sure it wasn't going to be brushed off like Steve had wanted it to.

"I knew that this would happen. Everything HYDRA put in my head is still there, no matter how hard I try to get away from it. All he did was say the goddamn words." Bucky said dropping his face in his good hand.

"Who is "he"?" Steve asked.

"I don't know."

"The bombing, the frame job. All of that was to get 10 minutes alone with you. Why?" Steve asked.

"I don't know." Bucky said with frustration in his voice.

"Well, then you're of no use to us. We can turn you over to the authorities." Chris said turning around.

"Chris." Steve said trying to get me to turn back.

"Wait, he wanted to know about Siberia." Bucky said, and she turned around to walk back up to him.

"What about Siberia?"

"He wanted to know where I was kept."

"Why?" Steve asked.

"There are more. More Winter Soldiers." He said looking up at Steve.

"That would have been really nice to know." Chris snapped.

"Chris, calm down." Steve said softly.

"I am calm!"

"I killed the man that created the super soldier serum. They injected it into other subjects and we trained them to be like me, but they lost control. They attacked the doctors and guards. Killed them all." Bucky said not fazed by her yelling.

"Who were they?" Steve asked.

"The most elite death squad in HYDRA history. That was before the serum."

"Did they turn out like you?" Sam asked.

"Worse."

"Could the doctor control them?" Steve asked.

"Enough."

"He told me he wanted to see an empire fall."

"And with them he could do it. They speak thirty languages. They can hide right under our nose. They could destroy a whole country in one night, and you'd have no warning."

"This would be easier if we had the whole team." Chris said to Steve.

"We could call Tony." Steve suggested.

"He'd never believe us." Sam said.

"He'd believe you." Steve said looking at Chris.

"Even if he did believe us there's no telling if the accords would allow him to help us." Chris said.

"So, we're on our own." Steve said with a sigh.

"I know a few people we could talk to." Chris said with a smile.

"Okay." Steve said, and she pulled out her phone.

"Hello?" Came the answer after a few rings.

"Clint, how do you feel about a little reunion?" She asked with a smile.

"Will I need my bow?"

"Yeah, and I need you to pick something up on the way."

"Name it."

"Wanda's under house arrest. I would like her to be involved too."

"Does this have anything to do with that paper you won't sign and James Barnes?"

"Very good chance it does."

"I'm in."

"Awesome."

"I'll send you the address." Chris said and hung up.

"One down, one to go." She said smiling at the boys.

"Who don't you know?" Sam asked.

"Hank Pym," Chris greeted.

"Christine Carter, or I guess it's Rogers now."

"If I recall, your technology broke into my base and destroyed my wings last year. I think it's time we return the favor."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Hank, I don't care what happened, but now we need your help."

"How can I assist the Avengers?"

"Tell your boy we want to meet."

"I'll get the word to him."

"Nice doing business with you, Hank."

"Anytime Mrs. Rogers." Hank said and hung up.

"That's two. Sam, I'll let you go meet him. You guys can hash out that embarrassment."

"Really? We just had to go there?"

"See ya." She smiled, and he walked out.

"You and I need to get Bucky to the rendezvous." Steve smiled.

"One more phone call." Chris said holding up her finger and dialing one more person.

"Why are you calling me?" Sharon said over the phone.

"I need our things. Text me a meet." Chris said and hung up before they could trace a call.

"Who was that?" Steve asked.

"Sharon. Come on let's go."


	21. Chapter 21

Chris got a text from Sharon and they grabbed an old-school VW Beetle from a junk yard and made their way to the meet. Chris hopped out of the car and walked over to her.

"I don't feel comfortable with you doing this. You're pregnant."

"And I need to make sure that I have this baby in a world without HYDRA's most skilled killers all hopped up on Steve Juice running around driving the world into chaos."

"There's more winter soldiers?"

"Apparently a lot worse than Bucky because they were HYDRA before Winter Soldiers. No need to scramble the brain."

"Wow. Don't think you'll let me in on that information?"

"You'll arrest us and we're the only ones that can do this."

"What about Tony?"

"We don't have time for the accords to approve of this mission."

"Will you call him?"

"He already knows where we're going to be. I made sure of that."

"Okay. Be safe." Sharon said and hugged her.

"I will be."

Chris put the things in the trunk of the car and got back in the passenger seat.

"Let's go. Clint is waiting on us." Chris said looking at Steve.

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"Okay, it's great that you guys are all made up and pregnant, but it's cramped back here." Sam said, causing Chris and Steve to laugh.

They got to the airport and Clint was waiting where they had told him to in a white van. He stepped out and walked around while Wanda got out of the passenger side.

"Clint." Chris said and walked over to hug him.

"Thanks for coming man. I wouldn't have called if I didn't feel it was important." Steve said shaking Clint's hand.

"I know. I owe you guys anyways."

"Hi, Wanda." Chris said and hugged her.

"Hi."

"How are you doing?"

"Good. It was about time I got off my ass." She said smiling at Clint.

"Pym's kid?" Chris asked.

"He's excited. Had to give him a little coffee, but he's good." Clint said and opened up the back of the van causing Scott to jump.

"What time zone are we in?" Scott asked jumping out.

"Just come on." Clint said and pushed him towards Chris, Steve, and Sam.

"Captain America!" Scott said excitedly as he shook Steve's hand.

"Mr. Lang." Steve said, and Scott continued to shake his hand.

"It's an honor." Scott said and looked at his hand that was still shaking Steve's "I'm shaking your hand for too long."

"Yeah." Steve said, and Scott let go.

"This is awesome!" Scott said and looked around.

"We can tell you think so." Chris said with a smile.

"And you're Mrs. Captain America. Your wedding was a big deal." Scott said and shook her hand.

"Chris works." She said with a smile as he let go of her hand much faster than Steve's.

"I wanted to say, I know you must know a lot of super people, so thinks for thanking of me."

"I think he means 'thanks for thinking of him'." Chris said to Steve and Steve smiled.

"Hey, man." Scott said looking at Sam.

"What's going on, Tic Tac." Sam said.

"About what happened last time…"

"It was a good audition, do it again and Mrs. Captain America will kill you."

Scott looked at Chris and she nodded.

"Did Clint tell you what we're up against?" Steve asked Scott.

"Psycho-assassins?"

"We're working outside the law this time. You will be a wanted man."

"What else is new?"

"We need to get moving." Bucky said we all looked at him.

"I've got a chopper lined up." Clint said.

An announcement came over the intercom and Chris looked at Steve.

"They're evacuating." She said.

"Stark." Sam said.

"I made sure he knew we were here. It's the only way I could think to get him to listen to us." She said looking at Steve.

"Suit up." He said, and they walked over to the car.

Steve opened the hatch and Chris grabbed her things to change into.

"You sure you want to do this?"

"Tony and Natasha won't hurt me. They know I'm pregnant. They care about us."

"If you're sure."

"I'm sure." Chris said and reached up to kiss him.

"I'll protect you no matter what. Our family is what matters to me."

"Diddo." She said, and he smiled at her.

Steve changed into his suit and Chris changed out of my tee shirt and jeans and into her mission suit with the holsters and belt. She tied up her long curly hair into a pony tail and rolled out her neck.

"Let's go." She said, and they made their way to the tarmac to get to the helicopter.

The plan was for Steve to run to the helicopter and draw their fire while Chris made her way to the hangar five for the jet.

"Chris watch out, they're starting to split up to get us."

"They think I'm at home protecting a baby." Chris said continuing to make a run for it.

Chris got to the hangar and hopped inside the jet undetected. She looked out the window and saw everyone else making their way for the hangar. She went back to the weapons cabinet on the ship and grabbed the sniper along with the magazine of tranquilizer darts. She climbed up the ladder and positioned herself on the top of the jet. She set up the tripod and laid down on her stomach and aimed as everyone lined up to fight.

"Steve, I got the backup ready." Chris said and didn't get a response since she was guessing he didn't want to give away her position.

"Don't worry about back up. Get the jet warmed up." Steve said once the fighting started.

"You brought your pregnant wife to a fight?" Tony asked as he continued to throw punches.

"She wasn't going to leave me."

"You should tell him the truth." Chris said over the comms where Tony couldn't hear her.

"Not now, Chris. We're fighting."

The spider-kid was swinging around, and Chris switched out for her normal bullets and aimed for the webs. She shot and cut the web and he fell to the ground.

"We need to go. The doctor is probably already in Siberia." Bucky said.

"I'll draw Vision, you get to the jet." Steve said, and she assumed he was talking to Bucky.

"Both of you get to the jet. The rest of us aren't getting out of here." Sam said over as they all continued to fight.

"As much as I hate it, to win this war some of us are going to have to lose this battle." Clint said.

"What's the play?" Steve asked.

"We need a diversion." Sam said.

"I could blow one of the fuel trucks." Chris suggested.

"I have a better idea. I have something big. I can't hold it for very long, so on my signal, run. And if I tear myself in half, don't come back for me." Scott said, and Chris furrowed her eyebrows.

"Tear yourself in half?" Chris asked.

"You sure about this, Scott?" Steve asked.

"I've done it a dozen times. Okay maybe only once, in a lab, and I passed out." Scott said, and she shook her head.

Suddenly Scott was huge and was holding onto Rhodey, so he couldn't catch Falcon.

"I'm guessing that's the signal." Chris said and saw Steve and Bucky start running towards her.

They could hear Scott laughing over the comms at how he was doing.

"Good job, Tic Tac." Sam said, and Chris looked through my scope to see Steve.

"Something just flew in me!" Scott yelled, and Chris looked to see Vision.

"Steve, Vision sees you." Chris said, and Steve didn't turn around.

Vision fired a beam at the control tower and Chris slid off the jet and onto the ground.

"Chris, you shouldn't be here." Natasha said, and she turned to see her.

"I'm getting really tired of everyone telling me what I should and shouldn't do." Chris said rolling her neck and walking towards her.

"I don't want to fight you."

"Then maybe you should have listened to Steve when we tried to warn you." Chris said and threw a punch in her direction she batted it away and Chris spun on the ground tripping her and the wrapped her legs around her arm and pulled.

"I don't want to fight you. I want to help you." Natasha said, and she loosened her hold.

"You promise?" Chris asked.

"You're practically my sister. Why would I ever hurt you?"

Chris let go and stood up.

"Chris." Steve said and ran over to her.

"If you really won't stop then I guess there's only one thing left to do." Tash said and held up her arm with her electric glove and shot between Steve, Chris, and Sam and hit T'Challa behind them.

"Go." Tash said, and they ran past her to the jet.

Chris got behind the controls and shot at the rubble to get out of the hangar. There was a blip on the radar and she looked out the window to see Rhodey flying up to them.

"Steve, we got a bogey." Chris said, and he looked out the window to see him.

Chris tried to increase their speed, but Tony's suits would always catch the jet. Soon Tony was with Rhodey.

"I got them." Sam said, and Chris heard explosions behind them.

"It's okay. He's not going to kill them." Steve reassured her as did the continuance of three blips on the radar.

"Steve, Rhodey is hit. I tried to dodge one of Vision's blasts." Sam said, and Chris gasped. She turned on auto pilot and rushed to the window to see Rhodey falling from the sky. She ran for the door, but Steve stopped her.

"You can't reach him in time. Sam and Tony can." Steve said and held her in his arms while she tried to pry him away.

She finally let go and sat back in the pilot's seat.

"Chris." Steve started, but she interrupted him.

"No! You cannot try to talk your way out of this one. If Rhodey dies, it will be your fault!" She yelled glaring at him before turning back to the window.

"What will happen to your friends?" Bucky asked Steve.

"Whatever it is, I'll take care of it." Steve said with sigh.

"They're going to jail. And since they are wanted by the UN they'll go to the most secure jail in the world in the middle of the ocean."

"Chris, please."

"You need to wake up, Steve. People have died, and people are going to keep dying. Vision was right. Bad people weren't the reason we were created. We are the reason there are so many bad people."

"Maybe you should have signed the accords."

"Then I would be in the exact same position Tash is in right now. Breaking the accords because I love you and will always have your back."

"I'm not worth all of this, Steve." Bucky said quietly from his seat behind Chris.

"All those kills, they weren't you. You didn't have a choice." Steve said.

"I know, but I still did it."


	22. Chapter 22

_Chris landed the jet outside the bunker in Siberia._

_"I don't want you in there with these assassins." Steve said._

_"If they're as bad as Bucky says, then you need me. You don't get a say in this."_

_Chris loaded up on guns and opened the back to walk out. She turned and saw Steve and Bucky laughing at the top of the ramp._

_"Umm, it's freezing out here. Would anyone want to join me?" She asked, and Steve walked down first with Bucky behind him._

_The three of them walked up behind the snow cat to see the bunker door open._

_"It's now or never." She said unholstering her gun and leading the way inside._

_"He's probably woken them up." Bucky said._

_They got on the elevator and Bucky pressed the floor. It clanked to a stop and Steve opened the door. Chris walked out behind Bucky with her gun raised and ready. Steve stayed close behind in case they took any fire he could cover her. There was a loud thud behind they and they turned around ready to engage. The door creaked and was opened showing Tony walking through._

_"Tony." Chris said with a small smile._

_"Why do you look so defensive?" Tony asked Steve._

_"It's been a really long day."_

_"I'm not currently after you." Tony said, and Bucky lowered his gun slightly._

_"Why are you here?" Steve asked._

_"Your story isn't as crazy as I thought. The real doctor was found dead. This guy, Zemo, is a Sokovian soldier. Ross has no idea that I'm here and I want it to stay that way. Then I'd have to arrest myself." Tony sighed._

_"That seems like it would be a lot of paperwork." Steve said, and Tony scoffed._

_"It's good to see you, Tony." Steve said lowering his shield._

_"You too, Steve." Tony said, and Chris smiled._

_"Dude, there is a truce here, you can drop the gun." Tony said to Steve and Bucky lowered his gun._

_Chris walked over to Tony and hugged him._

_"Are you being safe?"_

_"Tony these guys could destroy the world. I want my kid to grow up in a world. And if this kid is anything like me and Steve. It's resilient."_

_"That I can attest to." Tony smiled._

_"Well, come on. Time to do what we do." She said and walked back over to Bucky._

_Steve remained close to Chris in case anything happened._

_"I've got heat signatures." Tony said._

_"How many?" Chris asked._

_"Um, one?" Tony said, and they walked into a giant room._

_The pods lit up and they spread out, looking around._

_"Do not worry. They died in their sleep." Zemo said over the intercom._

_They looked into the pods and each soldier had a bullet to the head._

_"Did you think I wanted more of them? I am grateful that they brought you all here."_

_A light turned on and they saw Zemo. Steve tried to throw his shield at him, but it bounced off of the glass._

_"This bunker was built to stand UR-100 rockets."_

_"I could beat that." Tony said._

_"No doubt, Mr. Stark. But if you did that you would never know why you came."_

_"You killed innocents in Vienna, to bring us here?" Steve asked._

_"I thought about nothing else for over a year. I studied all of you. Followed all of you. I could even tell when your wife got pregnant. She looked paler in your photos and the way the others would fight her made me realize what was happening before she did. Now that you are all here I realized that I never saw the green in your blue eyes."_

_"You're Sokovian, is that what this is all about?" Steve asked._

_"Sokovia was destroyed long before any of you. I'm here because I promised someone that I would do this."_

_"You lost someone there."_

_"I lost everyone there. And now you will too." He turned and started a video for them to see._

_They walked over to the screen to watch._

_"An empire destroyed from the outside can rise again, but when it crumbles from within it is truly dead."_

_The video began, and Chris soon realized it was the video of Tony's parents' deaths. It showed how Bucky caused the crash and then showed how Bucky killed his parents._

_Tony went to lunge at Bucky, but Steve stopped him._

_"Did you know?" Tony asked him quietly._

_"I didn't know it was Bucky." Steve said._

_"Don't you bullshit me, Rogers." Tony whisper yelled._

_"We found out after the incident at the task force headquarters." Chris said._

_Tony pushed Steve away and looked at the ground._

_Tony ended up backhanding Steve across the room and Bucky raised his gun. Tony shot the gun out of his hands, but Bucky tried to punch him with his mechanical arm. Tony caught the punch and pushed it aside to grab his neck and slam him into the ground._

_"Steve." Chris said running to him and checking on him._

_"You get Zemo, it's not safe for you here." Steve said groaning as he got up._

_"I told you to tell him."_

_"That wouldn't have stopped this fight from happening." Steve said getting to his feet._

_"Steve,"_

_"It's not safe for you and the baby. We're all enhanced or encased in metal suits. You get Zemo." Steve sand and then ran off to help Bucky._

_Chris sighed and turned to run after Zemo. There was an explosion and she did her best to dodge the falling debris as she made her way for the door that Zemo had been behind. Chris placed a couple pocket explosives on the hinges and they broke the door off, so she could get through. She ran through the tunnels hitting dead end after dead end. She finally made it outside to see Prince T'Challa standing beside Zemo. Zemo tried to shoot himself, but the prince blocked it and took the gun away._

_"The living are not done with you yet." The prince said, and Chris walked over._

_"Prince T'Challa." Chris greeted and helped him restrain Zemo._

_"I believe you have a family to save, Mrs. Rogers."_

_"I trust you will see he is rightfully punished."_

_"My father's killer? Of course." He replied, and Chris turned to go back inside. _

_She made it to the fight and saw Steve slam his shield into Tony's chest powering down the suit._

_"Tony!" Chris yelled, and Steve looked up to see the horror on her face._

_Steve slipped off of Tony and she ran down to him._

_"Tony, are you okay?" She asked._

_"Get out of here. Before I have to arrest you." Tony said perching himself up._

_"Tony, you're hurt."_

_"I won't allow that baby to be born on the raft with the rest of the team. Leave. Hide. Don't come back." Tony said, and Steve walked over to Bucky._

_"Thank you." She said and hugged him._

_"I'm only doing this for you." _

_"Stay safe." Chris said and got up to help Steve with Bucky._

_"Rogers, that shield doesn't belong to you. My father made that, and you don't deserve it!" Tony yelled._

_Steve stopped and dropped the shield on the ground without even looking at him. Then continued to leave._


	23. Chapter 23

A month later Chris was sitting in her house in Wakanda sewing together a quilt for the baby. Steve walked in and walked up behind her.

"What are you doing?"

"I am making a quilt for our child."

"Chris we're months away from having this baby."

"And I want to be prepared. The King will only let me do demonstrations for combat. And nothing too demanding because he's afraid I'll hurt the baby."

"We share the same concerns then." Steve said and kissed the top of her head before walking into the kitchen to grab a snack.

Steve pulled out a bottle of beer and looked at her.

"This baby has super soldier blood pumping through its veins. You really think someone could hurt this baby?" Chris asked walking over to him and wrapping her arms around his waist.

"I don't want to take any chances." Steve said and rested his head on top of hers.

"Steve, we're already taking chances with this baby."

"How so?"

"The damage that was done while I was being held captive in Iraq. The doctors predicted I would never be able to carry to term. What if something happens?"

"Then we will deal with it then. The king is our friend now. He will make sure that our family remains alive and happy."

"We owe him everything."

"Speaking of which he wanted to invite us to dinner."

"Steve, I'm still working on this quilt and then the nursery."

"Chris, it's one night. And we have six months to worry about it. Come on. It's the king."

"Fine, but only because it's the king." She sighed and smiled at Steve.

Steve sat down on the couch and she joined him.

"You know, we never went back to the compound for anything of ours" Steve said looking down at her.

"That's because Secretary Ross would have had us arrested and thrown in the Raft like the people we worked so hard to bust out."

"True."

"Why are you thinking about it?"

"Just looking around, there's no pictures of us. Not our wedding photos or anything."

"I know, but we can't just go get those."

"What if we had Tony send them to us?"

"Then he would know where we were. And then he could tell Ross."

"What about Tash?"

"Just forget about it Steve. We'll get new pictures and make new memories. This is our life now, babe."

"I want reminders of our old life. The times we had in Brooklyn, the times that we had that made me fall in love with you."

"I want those to, but realistically we can't."

"I guess you're right." Steve said and got up.

"Steve."

"I'll be back in a little." Steve said without looking at her and walked out.

Chris sat there for a minute before walking over to the computer the king had provided them. She grabbed her go bag and pulled out her old phone. She popped the back off and pulled out the card before placing it inside the computer. She pulled up the photos and looked them over. She went to the library and placed the pictures on a computer there and then printed them out. She then ran and got some picture frames to put them all in. She hung a blown-up picture from their wedding above the couch and some of their other pictures throughout the house.

Chris heard Steve unlocking the front door and she quickly sat at the table to pretend she had been working on the quilt the whole time he had been gone.

"Chris, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have walked off. You were-." Steve said and looked around.

Chris peeked out of the corner of her eye to see his reaction.

"Where did these all come from?" Steve asked with a smile.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

Steve walked over to her and kissed her.

"Happy anniversary." She said smiling at him.

"I love it. It really feels like it's our home now." Steve said and looked around.

"I know. I'm sorry I didn't do it earlier. I just wanted to make sure it was safe before I used my card, but to see you happy is worth it."

"I got you something too." Steve said and pulled out the small box.

She grabbed it and opened it skeptically. Inside was a new wedding ring.

"I know you always left yours at the compound. That would mean that you left it there."

"I did."

"I wanted you to have one again."

"Thank you, Steve."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Steve got up and walked over to the living room to sit down and look at the pictures around him. Chris walked over to join him and sat so he could wrap his arm around her shoulders.

"Things are normal now." Steve said with a smile.

"We're actual normal people. No aliens, or gods, or terrorists. Just you, me, and our house."

"And our jobs training with the Wakandan Army. A secret civilization of individuals with advanced technology."

"Okay, so not completely normal, but for now we can have a normal family."

"Yes, that is true."

"Just think, we could be parents."

"Yeah. And we will have a curly haired child running around driving us up a wall."

"Exactly."

Months had passed, and Chris was in her third trimester and had hit 35 weeks. She was obviously showing, and the king had pulled her out of training two months before. The nursery was getting close to being completed. There were colors on the wall, a crib in the room, many clothes from T'Challa and his family. Everything was going to be ready in time to welcome their baby into the world.

The was a sharp shooting pain in Chris's stomach and she stopped and put a hand on her stomach and sat down.

"Steve." Chris said quietly.

"Chris, you okay?" Steve asked and knelt in front of her.

"I don't know. It might be contractions. It's painful." Chris said and groaned.

"Come on, we'll get you to the doctor." Steve said and helped her up.

They got to the doctor and had Chris change into a hospital gown. She was in the bed just sitting up and holding her stomach.

"Chris, how are you?" The doctor asked walking in.

"It's kind of painful." Chris said.

"Well, we can get an ultrasound and see what is going on."

"Could this be due to the surgery she had after the incident?"

"It very well could be. Past surgeries on the uterus can make it so the baby cannot be carried to term. If this is the case, then there is a good chance that we will have to perform a C-section to get the baby out." The doctor explained.

"Will the baby be okay?" Steve asked.

Chris let out a groan as another wave of pain came over her.

"The baby is only five weeks premature. It should be fine, but of course we won't know until I can take a look."

"Can I at least have something for the pain?"

"Not until we know what we have to do." The doctor said.

"Is there anything we can do for her?" Steve asked.

"I can get some things for aroma therapy and some other distractors."

"Thank you." Steve said as the doctor walked out.  
"Steve, what if the baby doesn't make it? It'll be my fault." Chris said with tears coming to her eyes.

"You heard the doctor. The baby has a really good chance of being okay."

"Steve, I'm serious. If we lose this baby now, it'll be all my fault."

"No, it'll be no one's fault. Our baby will be fine. And he or she will be beautiful."

"Okay." Chris said and nodded her head.

A little while later the doctor came back with some papers in his hands.

"So, it looks like we're going to have to get the baby out. Your uterus has thin walls that are lucky to have housed your child for as long as it has. If we go forward with a natural birth, there is a chance that your uterus could tear and there could be some major bleeding and we would have to open you up. If we perform a C-section then I can control the bleeding and try to repair as much as the uterus as I can."

"And if you can't repair the uterus?" Steve asked.

"I'll have to remove it and you won't be able to have any more children."

"Oh." Steve said.

"If it comes down to it I want you to take it out." Chris said.

Steve grabbed her hand and looked at her.

"I'd rather have the opportunity to have a life with the one child I have than risk having more that could kill me." Chris said, and Steve nodded.

"Okay." Steve said and kissed the back of her hand.

"Okay. We'll get you prepped for the surgery. Mr. Rogers, you can be in there with her. This will be a conscious sedation as long as I don't have to remove her uterus. If I do, we will sedate her and ask you to leave her room."

"Okay." Steve said, and the doctor walked out.

"It's going to be our baby. And it may be the only one we ever have, but it'll be ours. It'll be strong and beautiful and smart."

"I know. I love you, and if it's only the three of us then it's only the three of us and we will be the happiest three in the entire world."

"Exactly." Chris smiled and kissed him.

The doctors came in and prepped Chris and took her to the operating room to prep her. Steve was given a gown to put on and then sat next to her head as she was draped and covered.

"Start the anesthesia." The doctor said as he walked in and gowned.

"Chris, can you feel this?" The doctor said and touched her stomach.

"No." Chris said and shook her head.

"Good, we're ready to go in."

"It's good, baby. It's going to be okay."

"You're the one freaking out not me." Chris said with a smile.

"They are cutting you open."

"Then don't look. Look at my face. Just think as soon as this is over we will be parents."

There was crying and Steve looked over the drape to see the child being pulled out of the uterus.

"It's a boy." The doctor said and handed over to the nurse and she took him around to Steve and Chris.

"He's so beautiful." Chris said as her eyes rolled back in her head.

"She's really bleeding. I need to put her under. Mr. Rogers, I need you to get out."

"Is she gonna be okay?" Steve asked as he was pushed out.

"She'll be fine, but I need you to get out." The doctor said and Steve left.

"My son?"

"We're just going to clean him up and then we'll let you see him."

"Okay." Steve nodded and waited in Chris's original room.

After a few minutes the nurse walked back into the hospital room pushing the small cart holding his son.

"Hi, buddy." Steve smiled and picked him up to hold him in his arms.

"Your wife is stable and is being closed up and then she'll be here in a little while." The nurse said with a smile in her face.

"Thank you."

"Have you picked out a name?"

"Chris and I have a few in mind, but I'll wait for her to pick one."

"Okay, I'll leave you two. The king has been informed of your son's birth. He said he would be here soon enough."

"Tell his majesty there is no hurry."

The nurse nodded and stepped out.

Steve stood up and walked over to the window to look over Wakanda.

"Now, this isn't Manhattan, but it's pretty great. In Manhattan there is a layer of smoke over everything, but here there's a certain beauty in the hum of a city. I grew up in an older city called Brooklyn. I was much smaller than I am now. I hope you don't get my small stature. I was picked on a lot by the kids. Then I was frozen in a block of ice. I hope you never have to go through that either. But one good thing did come out of it, I met your mother. And although sometimes she drives me crazy, I love her. How could I not, she gave me you." Steve said and looked down at his son in his arms.

"Hey, you." Chris said being rolled in on her bed.

"Hey." Steve smiled turning to show their son in his arms.

"How is he?" Chris asked as her bed was locked into place.

"He's beautiful. Do you want to hold him?"

"Yeah."

Steve walked over to her and gently placed their son in her arms.

"He is beautiful." Chris said with tears in her eyes.

"We did that."

"Yeah. What are we going to name him?"

"I liked Gabriel." Steve smiled.

"Gabriel? I love it."

"How about Tomas for the middle name? After your father?" Steve asked.

"Gabriel Tomas Rogers, I love it. I love him. He got your blue eyes."

"And it looks like he got your curly brown hair." Steve said calming the small curls on his head.

There was a knock on the door and the happy parents looked up to see T'Challa standing in the doorway.

"Your majesty, you grace us with your presence." Chris said with a smile.

"Please, Chris, it is T'Challa."

"It frazzles you." Chris smiled.

"This is your son?" He asked gesturing to the baby.

"Gabriel." Chris said and T'Challa walked over to stand beside Chris and look down on the child.

"He is beautiful, my friends."

"Thank you. And thank you for allowing us to stay here with you." Steve said looking across the hospital bed at T'Challa.

"It is the least I could do after you helped me catch my father's killer. If you need anything else. Please do not hesitate to ask. The crowning ceremony will be postponed until you are back on your feet and able to attend."

"Please, you do not need to wait for us."

"Crown or no crown, I can still make decisions. And I have decided that I need my new friends there."

"Yes, your majesty."

"Rest. I will see you all soon." T'Challa said and kissed the top of Chris's head before leaving.

Steve sat on the edge of the bed beside Chris and wrapped an arm around her shoulder while grabbing Gabriel's hand with his own. Gabriel opened his eyes and Chris smiled at the beautiful blues that stared up at her and Steve.


	24. Chapter 24

Chris and Steve stood on the cliff faces with Gabriel in her hands. Today was challenge day. This was the first time that people not of Wakanda were invited to watch this process. All of the tribes refused to challenge T'Challa, but out through the tunnels came those of the Jabari tribe. Their king M'Baku stood in the center of the pond and preached how Wakanda was being led by incompetent children and challenged T'Challa for the throne. The masks of their gods were placed upon their head and then surrounded by their warriors to shrink the battle field.

It was clear that M'Baku was powerful and a match to T'Challa in strength, but in intelligence and perseverance T'Challa had M'Baku beat. M'Baku yielded after T'Challa begged him to for his people's sake. As M'Baku tapped out the people cheered.

"Gabriel, you just witnessed history. This will be a day we will remember for a long time." Chris whispered to Gabriel before they followed the others to the city where they were able to put Gabriel down for a nap.

"You should rest, love." Steve said to Chris as she yawned over Gabriel's crib.

"Come with me. You've gotten less sleep than I have the last few days." Chris smiled at him.

"You know I don't need as much sleep."

"Well, then come hold your wife while she sleeps."

"Yes, ma'am." Steve smiled and followed Chris to her bed where she was able to lay down and rest.

"Do you believe that we will ever return home?" Chris asked.

"I have to. This place is amazing, and we have made a home here, but it is not _our_ home." Steve said.

"I want to see our friends again."

"I know. We will. Things will settle down and we will contact our friends."

"I know, but how long will that be?"

"I don't know. We are together. All three of us and that is what matters."

"Okoye." Chris greeted on her Kimoko beads.

"Chris, there is a meeting going on that the King wishes you attend."

"I shall be there as soon as I can." Chris nodded and lowered her arm.

"I'll watch Gabriel." Steve said as he sat on the couch with Gabriel resting on his chest.

"Good, because I'd hate for you to move and wake him." Chris smiled and kissed Steve before running out the door.

"Mrs. Rogers, thank you for joining us on such short notice." Queen Ramonda said and nodded towards the brunette.

"Queen Ramonda." Chris greeted in return before taking a seat in the circle.

"We picked up information that a misidentified Wakandan artifact was stolen from a British museum yesterday by Ulysses Klaue. He has set up a buy in South Korea tomorrow night." Okoye explained.

"Klaue has been evading the Wakandans for thirty years. I can capture him and bring him back here to stand trial." T'Challa offered.

"We do not need a warrior, we need a king." One of the tribal leaders said.

"This is too great of an opportunity to pass." Okoye said.

"Chris, you know more about this black market than anyone. What do you think?" T'Challa asked.

"You say Klaue has been one step ahead of you for thirty years now. If that is the case then someone like Klaue knows just who to go to to make sure that word of his sales does not reach you. If you know of this, then there is a good chance that Klaue wants you there. This could very well be a trap, your majesty." Chris offered her insight.

"Okoye is right. But if this is a trap then we need to walk in knowing it could be." T'Challa said.

"Let me go with you, brother." W'Kabi asked his king.

"I need you here, protecting our borders." T'Challa said knowing how badly W'Kabi wanted justice for his parents.

"Then I need your word that you either kill him where he stands, or bring him back for trial."

"I promise, my friend. We will proceed with this mission." T'Challa said and people began filing out of the room.

"Chris, I was wondering if you would be willing to join me on this mission. Your insights into this world would be greatly appreciated."

"There is too much risk going out in public like that. There are CIA in South Korea, and if I am noticed I could be taken back to the UN and away from my family."

"I understand. I would like to have you and Steve on call with Shuri."

"Yes, your majesty." Chris smiled and left.

Steve and Chris stood in Shuri's lab awaiting instruction.

There was banter going back and forth and Okoye told Nakia and T'Challa to focus on the mission instead of each other.

"Were we always this distracted?" Chris asked Steve as she sipped on her tea.

"I was." Steve smiled at her.

"Oh, shush." Chris smiled and nudged him with her shoulder.

"You are as bad as my brother and Nakia." Shuri said with a smile.

"Agent Ross of the CIA is here." T'Challa said over their communications.

"Well, good thing we didn't go with." Chris smiled at Steve.

"Yeah, that would've been a nightmare." Steve smiled at Chris.

"Klaue is here." Okoye said, and all joking ceased.

"The vibranium?" T'Challa asked.

"I don't see it. I thought weapons were not allowed in here?"

"They aren't." Nakia said.

"Well, someone missed the memo."

"It's a set up. They knew you guys were coming. Get out of there." Chris said.

"Not without Klaue." T'Challa said.

"They are going to get themselves killed."

"We need to move on Klaue." Nakia whispered.

"We can't afford a shoot out with all of these people here." T'Challa reasoned.

"I've been made." Okoye said and suddenly there was grunting coming from their side.

"Get ready, Shuri. I think they're going to need us." Steve said and Shuri smiled.

"So much for not making a scene." Chris sighed and shook her head.

"Since when do avengers do anything quietly."

Suddenly a car appeared in the sand.

"Shuri, let me handle this." Chris smiled and got in the seat.

"Go!" T'Challa said as he hopped on top of the car.

"Tight turn." Chris said and T'Challa helped.

There was a bump in the road and Chris narrowed her eyes.

"I just ran someone over, didn't I?"

"Don't worry about it."

"Brother, look at your suit. You've been taking bullets and charging it up."

"Go around the truck."

Chris swerved and pulled around. T'Challa jumped off the car and landed on their car destroying it with its kinetic energy.

"Impressive."

"Faster, Chris."

"I can't go any faster."

Klaue's arm turned into a sonic canon that destroyed the entire car. The sand dropped out from under her.

"Brother!" Shuri yelled.

"He is okay." Nakia said and they got Kalue back to the CIA hideout.

"Thank you for your help Mrs. Rogers." Shuri said and smiled at her.

"Shuri, how many times must I tell you to call me Chris."

"Sorry, Chris."

"Come, Steve, we should probably get home and make dinner so Gabriel can go to bed."

"Good idea." Steve smiled and walked out with Chris.

"We're home." Chris smiled as she walked the house.

"He was just crying. I'm guessing it is because he was hungry." Their nanny Tenne said.

"Oh yeah, well good, because Mommy is ready to feed you." Chris smiled and took Gabriel.

"I'll get dinner started." Steve smiled.

"Thank you, Tenne." Chris smiled.

"Anytime." Tenne smiled and left.

"What do you want for dinner?"

"We should have some leftovers."

"I'll reheat them and bring them to you."

"I can meet you at the dinner table after I feed him."

"Whatever you want." Steve smiled at her.

Chris took Gabriel back to his room and sat in a chair where she fed him. After she was done Gabriel was sound asleep in his crib.

Steve was waiting out at the dinner table where the reheated spaghetti was waiting for her along with some candles and wine.

"Steve?"

"We haven't had a romantic dinner in a long time. I figured it was time." Steve shrugged.

"And you used the reheated spaghetti too." Chris smiled.

They sat at the table across from each other and enjoyed the food and each other's company.

"Remember when we used to do things like this in our apartment in New York?" Steve smiled.

"Yes, and afterwards we would sit in the living room and listen to the Yankees on the radio, or watch a movie if it wasn't baseball season."

"And in the winter we would sit by the window with our tea and watch as the snow fell down over the city."

"I miss the snow."

"I miss all of it."

"If you could go back and sign the accords, would you?" Chris asked dropping her smile.

"Somedays I think about it. Think about turning my back on Bucky and focusing on us and the life we should have given our son. But I also know that I did the right thing. Saving my best friend."

"Sometimes I wish we had. So our son could see the snow. He could be around our friends."

"I know, I'm sorry I forced us into this." Steve said and stared down at his face.

"Steve," Chris said and grabbed his hand to get him to look at her, "I would follow you anywhere. I trust in your decisions, and I trust that you will always do what is best for our family."

"I love you so much." Steve said and kissed the back of her hand.

"I love you too."

"Why don't you go start a bath and I'll clean up dinner. I'll join you after."

"Okay." Chris smiled and got up.

Chris changed out of her robe and went into the bathroom and started a bath. She decided to spoil herself tonight, used the incents and the bubbles. Chris climbed into the bathtub and leaned back.

"Got room for one more?" Steve asked and walked into the bathroom.

Chris smiled as Steve got into the bathtub and leaned his back against her. Chris smoothed back his hair and kissed the top of his head.

"Your hair is getting long do you want me to cut it sometime this week?"

"Nah, I kinda like it."

"Okay, does that go for the beard too?"

"What, do you not like it?" Steve laughed.

"It's all scratchy right now."

"Like this!" Steve said and started rubbing his face against her arm.

"Stop it! Steve!" Chris laughed as she tried to pull her arm away and splashed water over the side of the tub.

Their laughs settled, and Steve leaned into her once more.

"Can we do this more often?" Steve asked.

"Take baths? Of course."

"Not just that. But have a night to ourselves."

"We can work on that." Chris said and wrapped her arms around Steve a little tighter.


	25. Chapter 25

The next morning Chris and Steve took Gabriel to the vibranium mines where Shuri's lab was and where Agent Ross was being treated for a bullet to the spine.

"Look at little Gabriel. May I?" Shuri asked as the family walked in.

"Of course, Shuri." Chris smiled and handed over Gabriel.

"You must let me watch him sometime."

"I am not sure that that is the best idea, sister." T'Challa smiled at his sister.

Shuri stuck her tongue out at him and the Rogers both laughed.

"Your majesty." Steve said and shook his hand.

"Maybe it is not best that you all are here." T'Challa said.

"We can't hide in fear, your majesty." Steve said.

"Please my friends. For the sake of your family and my people, I suggest we do this at another time."

"As you wish your majesty." Chris said and bowed her head.

Shuri handed Gabriel back over and the Rogers left the lab and went back to the palace.

"Chris, Steve, so good to see you both." Queen Mother said with outstretched arms.

"Good to see you as well, Queen Mother." Chris smiled and hugged the queen.

"And little Gabriel. Let me see you."

Chris handed over Gabriel again and Steve wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

"He has your eyes, Captain Rogers. As blue as the sky that will have all the girls melting in their shoes. And your brown curls, Chris. A dangerous combination if you ask me." Queen Mother said with a smile.

"I am well aware." Chris smiled.

"Come, have some tea with me and I can have my fill of babies, seeing as how my children will not give me any for a long time."

"Of course." Steve answered, and they followed the Queen Mother to a sitting room where they were able to have tea and some snacks.

"Are you enjoying your new home?" Queen Mother asked.

"Yes, we are. Thank you so much for your hospitality." Chris answered.

"Of course. The family that helped bring my husband's murderer back to us is more than welcome to seek asylum within our borders."

"And for allowing Bucky to remain here as well." Steve said.

"Your friend is something special. We await the day he awakens and can teach us all he knows."

"We all await the day he awakens."

"Queen Mother, there is a situation that requires your presence." A messenger said coming into the room.

"Excuse me. Thank you for entertaining an old woman." Queen Mother said and handed Gabriel back over.

"That is fine. It is time for Gabriel to eat and take a nap anyways." Chris smiled.

The Queen Mother bowed her head and left. Chris and Steve gathered their things and followed suit but made their way home.

Gabriel was put down for a nap and Chris and Steve sat on the couch next to each other.

"We really should be doing something productive." Chris said.

"But I'm so tired." Steve groaned.

"I thought you didn't get tired." Chris joked.

"Fatherhood has taken its toll on me."

Chris laughed, and Steve smiled.

"I'm serious."

"I know. That's the best part."

Nakia came bursting into the house causing Chris and Steve to jump up ready to defend their home.

"Nakia, what are you doing?" Chris asked.

"T'Challa is dead. The outsider, he is T'Challa's cousin. He defeated him in combat. We need to get you all out of the city. If Killmonger were to find you there is no doubt that he would expose you to the rest of the world."

"T'Challa is dead?" Steve asked.

"Yes, and I am going to take you to the Queen and Shuri, so I can sneak you all out."  
"Steve, pack a bag for Gabriel. I'll grab him." Chris said and they rushed into action grabbing anything they needed before running to the rendezvous spot.

There, Shuri and Queen Mother were waiting for them. Nakia was not far behind the Rogers with Agent Ross.

"Rogers?" Ross asked.

"Agent Ross?"

"I should turn you over to the United States."

"The Rogers family is under the protection on Wakanda." Queen Mother said, and Ross looked to her.

"Do you know what these people have done?"

"They brought the killer of my husband to justice."

Gabe started crying and Steve handed him over to Chris who shushed her baby as Steve stood protectively in front of them.

"All will be okay, my darling." Chris whispered.

"And that child is a citizen of Wakanda. You wouldn't take parents from their child, would you?" The Queen asked.

"Please, Agent Ross, I ask you as a mother, not an avenger, please keep our location to yourself. We don't want to cause any trouble. We just want to be with our son." Chris pleaded.

Ross didn't say anything but looked between the three of them and how close they stood to one another showing how they were going to protect each other no matter what?

"One international problem at a time." Ross finally answered.

"Come, we need to get out of here." Nakia said.

The group started running through the forest. There was only one place they could go that would keep them safe.

They climbed the snowy mountains of the Jabari. With the heart shaped herb that Nakia had taken they could align with the Jabari and give the herb to their king M'Baku to defeat Killmonger.

"Steve, did you grab another blanket?" Chris asked as she attempted to hold her son closer to her in the snowy cold mountains.

"I can take him, you know I run warmer."

"Okay." Chris nodded and slowly handed Gabriel to Steve.

"So, you're a mother now?" Ross asked as he walked alongside Chris.

"Yes, and as a mother I will do whatever it takes to protect my child."

"Someone has to answer for your crimes."

"The fact that we cannot go home, see our friends, live our lives outside of the Wakandan borders? You believe that isn't punishment enough?"

Ross didn't say anything to the angry mothers remarks.

"Did you hear that?" Nakia asked and suddenly they were surrounded by Jabari warriors.

"Keep your eyes down." Queen Mother said as they closed in on them.

They were led to the throne room where M'Baku sat upon his throne looking down on them. The Queen Mother stepped forward.

"My son was murdered in ritual combat."

"Was it fair?"

"Yes, but,"

"Then he was not murdered but defeated."

"Your highness, the new king is-," Ross started but was cut off by M'Baku's grunting.

"You do not get to speak, one more word and I will feed you to my children!" M'Baku yelled at Agent Ross.

"I kid, we are vegetarians." M'Baku said and started laughing.

"Great King M'Baku, we are here to offer you the heart shaped herb. An outsider sits upon the Wakandan throne and only you can help us stop him." Nakia said kneeling before him.

The rest of the group kneeled before M'Baku as he stood.

"Follow me." M'Baku said solemnly and walked past them.

He led them to their medicine hut where buried in the snow laid T'Challa.

"That is impossible." Nakia said as she, Queen Mother, and Shuri knelt around him.

"How?" Nakia asked.

"One of our fishermen found him in the river and brought him to me. We buried him in the snow to keep him from moving on." M'Baku explained.

"I can heal him at my lab." Shuri said.

"If you move him he will be dead in seconds."

"Not only that, but Killmonger will have your lab filled with people loyal to him that will turn you over to be killed the minute you step foot in there." Chris said placing a hand on Shuri's head.

"Give him the herb." The Queen said and took the herb to grind it up.

Outsiders turned away as they fed him the liquid and buried him in the snow.

They all waited patiently as they prayed.

"Here." M'Baku said taking off his fur and handing it to Chris.

"What for?"

"This weather is harsh for children who are not accustomed to it."

"Thank you." Chris said and bowed her head before wrapping Gabe in the fur.

Steve wrapped his arms around Chris placing their child between them.

T'Challa sat up through the snow and everyone turned to see the miracle.

"Does anyone have a blanket?" T'Challa asked with a shivering smile.

"You should rest. We shall speak in the morning." M'Baku said and walked away.

They were all led to a room where they were all able to find a place to sleep. Chris and Steve took the floor and piled up a few blankets between them to keep Gabe warm.

As the sun rose so did everyone else. They moved to the throne room where they were able to update T'Challa on everything that had happened.

"Killmonger has the full support of the military. He also burned the garden of the heart shaped herbs." Nakia explained.

"It makes sense. That is how his unit was trained." Chris said sitting on a bench with Gabe in her arms.

"That's right. They used to destabilize foreign countries. They strike at transitions of power when loyalties are shifting. You can get control of the government, the military, and their resources." Ross explained.

"The vibranium, and my designs." Shuri said.

"He will send our weapons all over the world. Nakia, I need you to get my family out of Wakanda." T'Challa said standing up and walking to his family.

"No, we will not leave Wakanda." Queen Ramonda said.  
"I need to keep you safe."

"If those weapons are distributed, nowhere will be safe." Shuri said and stood up holding out one of the Black Panther necklaces she had designed.

Shuri walked over and placed it over his head.

"The Black Panther lives. And when he fights for the fate of Wakanda I will be right beside him."

"We all will." Chris smiled.

M'Baku yawned loudly reminding everyone of his presence.

"Are you all done?" M'Baku asked.

"May I have a moment with Lord M'Baku?" T'Challa asked.

Everyone rose to their feet and walked out of the room.

"I don't think you should be in this battle." Steve said to Chris as they walked out.

"Why not?"

"We have a child that we have to think about first."

"This is our home that we are talking about. Not just Wakanda, but the planet as a whole. Right now we might be fugitives, but how do you think someone like Erik will view people like us. Even if the avengers are no more we are still seen as avengers to the rest of the world. People who work above the law to stop people like him from slaughtering millions. And who is to say he will stop with us. He could kill our son for who his parents are."

"Someone has to stay with Gabe in case one of us doesn't make it back."

"You should stay with him. I know my way around the vibranium technology better than you do. I could help Shuri shut everything down."

"I don't want to leave you out there without someone watching your back."

"I will have Shuri and Nakia and I'm sure many will rally behind T'Challa once they see he is alive. I will not be alone."

"I will stay here with the Queen, make sure she is kept safe. If you need me you call me." Steve said and pressed his forehead to hers.

"I will, I promise."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Shuri, Nakia, Ross, and Chris all snuck into the lab within the mountain while T'Challa kept everyone else occupied outside. They made it into the lab and the hidden weapons were uncovered on the sand table.

"Nakia and I will get control of the Royal Talon with this." Shuri said holding up the same device that allowed Chris to drive the car from Wakanda earlier that week.

"And what do you want us to do?" Ross asked.

"You will have to fly it from in here." Shuri said placing the Kimoyo beads on his wrist.

"What?"

"Do not worry, Chris can walk you through it. She will be here as your lookout and in case anything was to go wrong. Good luck." Shuri said and grabbed a few more things before running out.

"We're counting on you." Nakia said following after her.

"Shouldn't you be doing this?" Ross asked.

"You're the Air Force pilot." Chris defended.

"Remote piloting system activated."

"Just sit in the chair. We can't let the weapons get beyond Wakanda."

"Okay, I found them now what?"

"Shoot them down."

Ross got one causing the others to turn and begin attacking him.

"Activate copilot seat." Chris said, and a second chair popped up beside Ross.

"You drive, I'll shoot."

"Okay."

"The lab is under attack." The computer said.

"Crap. Looks like you're back to shooting for yourself." Chris said and hopped out of the chair.

Chris grabbed two guns and made her way out of the lab and to the mine where the plane was. Chris jumped down and landed on top of it. She busted through the glass and shot the man that was flying and then got out of the plane before it had the chance to crash.

Chris and Ross made their way to the surface where everyone had stopped fighting.

"Shuri, where is T'Challa?" Chris asked.

"He fell down there with Killmonger."

"Have you heard from him?"

"Not since he asked me to turn on the trains."

Suddenly another transport elevator came up and there was T'Challa with Killmonger in his arms.

"It is done." T'Challa said.

Shuri and Nakia ran to T'Challa and hugged him.

"About disclosing your location." Ross said to Chris.

"Whatever you choose to do is your choice but know that we will not stop running."

"A life on the run is no way to raise a child. If you stay here, inside Wakanda's borders then I can assure you that I will keep your location a secret."

"Thank you, Agent Ross."

"Oh, it's nothing." Ross said with a shrug and a smile.

"If you will excuse me, I have a family to return to." Chris smiled and started to a jet that took her to the border where Steve and Gabriel were staying in a hut.


	26. Chapter 26

"Steve?" Chris asked walking in.

"You're okay?" Steve asked and walked over and hugged her.

"I'm okay." Chris smiled into his shoulder.

"I was worried you were never gonna come home."

"I would never leave you."

Steve let go and kissed Chris.

"Your son missed you." Steve said and Chris looked towards the bed where Gabriel was lying there, beginning to wake up.

"Hello, handsome." Chris said picking him up and smiling at him.

Gabriel barely woke as Chris lifted him into her arms.

"I missed you. I missed you both." Chris said holding Gabriel and resting her forehead against Steve's.

"Let's go home." Steve said and grabbed their bags before walking towards the door.

A few weeks later T'Challa was knocking on the door to their house.

"T'Challa, what do we owe the pleasure?" Steve asked stepping aside to allow the king to come inside.

"Your friend, he is awake." T'Challa said with a smile.

"Bucky?"

T'Challa nodded and looked at Chris who had walked out of the kitchen after what she had heard.

"Let's go." Chris smiled at him.

T'Challa took the Rogers to the border village where Bucky was waiting at the edge of the lake.

"Bucky?" Steve asked slowly approaching him.

Bucky turned around and looked at Steve.

"Do you remember me?" Steve asked.

Bucky nodded.

Steve smiled and hugged him.

"I missed you so much, bud."

"I missed you too." Bucky smiled at him.

"I have someone for you to meet. You might remember my wife, Chris. This is our son, Gabriel." Steve said gesturing to Chris and Gabriel who were standing behind him.

"Son? You're a dad?" Bucky asked looking between Steve and his family.

"Yeah, hard to believe isn't it. The scrawny kid from Brooklyn with a wife and child."

"It is." Bucky smiled.

"This is your nephew." Chris said stepping forward with Gabriel in her arms.

"Wow, he's certainly got your eyes, Steve."

"They certainly couldn't get any bluer." Chris smiled.

"No, they could not." Bucky smiled.

"This kid is going to need a family. Something more than some super parents. A super uncle would be cool as well."

"You want me to…?"

"You are family. Lord knows that Chris and I don't have anyone else."

"I'd love to be a part of your family." Bucky smiled.

Chris smiled and held out Gabriel so Bucky could touch him. Without his other arm, Bucky refused to hold him. But he ruffled his hair and allowed Gabriel grab one of his fingers. The three adults smiled as Gabriel giggled at his uncle.

Two years had passed, and Gabriel had grown into the little terror that Chris and Steve knew he would. He was stronger than most two-year old's, but not stronger than his mother which was what was important at the moment. Steve and Chris continued their work with the King while still keeping their location a secret.

"Chris, do you hear that?" Steve asked walking around the house listening for the ringing. At first he thought it was his Kimoyo beads, but then realized it was not his and the ringing was not the same.

"I'm trying to find it before it wakes up Gabriel. I finally got him down for his nap." Chris said running around the house with Steve.

They finally pulled out the flip phone from the junk drawer in the kitchen.

"It's Tony." Steve said.

"What?" I said in utter disbelief.

"Tony?" Steve said answering the phone.

"The universe is in trouble. We need the Avengers. All of them." Bruce said.

"Bruce?" Steve said and Chris looked at Steve.

"The universe is in danger. Thanos is coming and he's already killed Thor."

"Thor is dead?"

"And the universe is next if we don't do something."

"Great. I'll call the babysitter." Chris sighed.

She walked back into Gabriel's room and sat in the rocking chair next to his crib.

"Chris, it's time to go." Steve said from the doorway.

"What if we don't come back? What if we never see him again? I just want to stare at him for a little longer."

"We will see him again. We will save the universe and we will come back here and be together until we are old and decrepit." Steve said kneeling in front of her.

"I know." I smiled at him.

Steve held my face in his hand and kissed my forehead before standing up and turning to Gabriel.

"Mommy and I love you very much, our little angel." Steve said smoothing back Gabriel's brown hair.

"I love you." I said and kissed his forehead before they walked out of the room.

"Keep him safe." I told his nanny before Steve and I grabbed our bags.

"Of course, ma'am." She nodded and closed the doors after them.

"Natasha, it's Chris." I said over the phone.

"Well, it's about damn time, you two. Wanda missed her check-in. She's in Scotland visiting Vision. I'm on my way there now with Sam."

"We'll meet you." I said and hung up.

"You must understand why I cannot come with you." T'Challa said to Steve and Chris as the two men walked up to her.

"You have an entire nation to look after. We will contact you with more information. Thank you for allowing us the jet." Steve said shaking his hand.

"Of course, anything for some of my closest friends. I had Shuri make you some new weapons as well." T'Challa smiled.

"Tell Shuri thank you." Chris smiled and took the bag he held out to her.

Steve and I boarded the ship and took of.

"Natasha, Sam, Wanda, and Vision are all in Scotland." Chris said getting into the pilot's seat.

"Well, let's get going." Steve said and closed the bay doors.

"Natasha!" I said as we landed near her beacon.

"Chris, Steve. Welcome to the party. We need t hurry to the train station." Natasha said and they all took off running.

As they entered the train station a train pulled through blocking them from getting to Vision and Wanda.

One of the aliens tried to throw a spear at Steve and he dodged and caught it walking out of the shadows. I raised my gun from Shuri and shot towards one of them knocking them back. Sam flew in and sent the other into a café.

Steve went to throw the spear at one of them, but he dodged and flew right into my hands for I was right behind the alien. I took the spear and sliced the backs of his knees before stabbing him. I knocked him to the ground with the staff still in my hands. I went to lunge at him again, but the staff flew from my hands into the female alien's as she jumped towards me. Steve rolled picking up the male alien's staff and blocked it. I took the staff that I had strapped to my back and twisted it activating the vibranium. Steve and I stood on opposite sides of the female alien and took turns attacking her. Sam came and knocked her back towards the other alien and we all stared down at the two of them ready to pounce.

"Get up." The female alien said to the other.

"I cannot."

"We don't want to kill you, but don't think we won't." Natasha said calmly with a threat in her voice.

"You'll never get another chance." She threatened before they were beamed up into their ship.

"Come on." Chris said and walked with the others over to Wanda and Vision.

"Can you stand?" Sam asked Vision as he offered him a hand.

Sam and Wanda supported Vision while Natasha, Steve and I stood in front of them.

"Thank you." Vision said to both me and Steve.

"Let's get him on the jet." Steve said with a nod and led the way.

Everyone loaded onto the jet and I got in the pilot's seat.

"Where are we going, Steve?" I asked.

"The compound." Steve said and I nodded.

"So, the baby?" Natasha asked standing beside me.

I reached into my pocket and pulled out our family picture.

"His name is Gabriel. He's being watched by a friend right now. She's good to him. She'll take care of him."

"We'll get you back to him."

"I know." Chris said.

They landed at the compound and Steve and I walked into the compound to see Rhodey talking to a hologram of the secretary.

"Mr. Secretary." Steve greeted.

"You've got a set on you, that's for sure." The secretary said walking closer.

"Seems you could use a little bit of that." I defended beside him.

"The world is in trouble and you walk in thinking all is forgiven?"

"I'm not expecting forgiveness. Earth just lost her best defender. And we're here to save more than the planet. We're talking about the universe." Steve said, and walked through the secretary.

"Arrest them." The secretary said to Rhodey.

"Of course, sir." Rhodey said and hung up with him.

"Hey Rhodey." I smiled.

"It's great to see you guys." Rhodey smiled and shook Steve's hand.

"Wow, you guys look like shit. Must have been a rough few years."

"Hotels weren't exactly five stars." Sam joked.

"Speak for yourself." I said looking at all of them with a smile.

"I think you all look great." Brue said and everyone turned to look at him. I looked back and forth between he and Natasha unsure how this would transpire.

"Hi, Bruce." Natasha smiled.

"Nat." He greeted and it extened into silence.

"Okay, well, let's get this party started. Sooner we save the world and the sooner I can get home to Gabriel." I smiled at everyone.

Everyone debriefed Rhodey and Banner and I placed one of my Kimoyo beads down to project who we had seen.

"They can find us. We need to be ready for the next time."

"We need everyone. Where's Clint?" Bruce asked.

"After everything with the accords he and Scott took deals so that they could be with their families. They're under house arrest." Natasha explained.

"Scott?"

"Ant-man." Steve told him.

"There's an Ant-man and a Spiderman?"

"You missed a lot in the years you were gone." I said looking down at the ground.

"It doesn't matter. Thanos has the largest army in the universe and he won't stop until he has all six stones."

"We have to protect Vision." Natasha said.

"We have to destroy the stone." Vision said leaning against the wall causing everyone to look at him. "I've been giving it a great deal of thought, and I believe that if it were exposed to a powerful energy source it could be destroyed." Vision said looking at Wanda.

"And you along with it. We're not discussing this." Wanda said shaking her head.

"If we destroy the stone then Thanos can't get it."

"That price is too high."

"Only you can pay it."

Wanda pulled away from Vision and turned her back.

"Thanos plans to wipe out half of the universe. One live can not stand in the way of his defeat."

"We don't trade lives, Vision." Steve said.

"Captain, you once laid down your own life to save millions of people. We're talking about trillions."

"You might have a choice, Vision." Banner spoke up. "Your mind is more than just the stone. It is a complex overly of many things. Jarvis, Ultron, Tony, me, the stone. All of those systems mixed together and are learning from one another."

"So, Vision is more than the stone?" Wanda asked.

"If we remove the stone there's still a lot of Vision left. And perhaps those are the best parts."

"Can you do it?" Natasha asked.

"No. Not here." Bruce said shaking his head.

"I think I know someone who could." I said straightening up.

"Chris," Steve said.

"The fate of half the universe rests on us. He knows that. He will open his city up for this. And Shuri could do it. With her knowledge and technology." I whispered to him.

"You call T'Challa. I'll get everyone onto the jet." Steve sighed.

"We're gonna see Gabriel." I smiled and kissed his cheek before running for the jet.


	27. Chapter 27

Everyone loaded onto the jet and Chris began the protocols for take-off. She lifted her Kimoyo beads and called for T'Challa. His head appeared and

"Your majesty, we're on our way back to Wakanda. And we're bringing guests, and possibly a war with us. Tell Shuri to ready her lab. I'm going to need her. We're also going to need Bucky."

"Yes, my friend. If it is the universe we are talking about that would include my people as well."

"Thank you, T'Challa." Chris said and hung up.

"Captain." He said and hung up.

Everyone boarded the jet and Steve sat alongside Chris.

"You know this means they will come to Wakanda in search of Vision. We are taking the danger to our son." Steve said.

"If we fail, half the universe dies. I'd rather fail having seen him one last time." Chris said looking at him with determination in her eyes.

"Okay. I agree with you." Steve smiled.

They took off for Wakanda and everyone sat and talked quietly. Natasha was still avoiding Bruce by sitting next to Chris.

"You should talk to him." Chris said.

"Why?"

"Because you missed him. And he missed you."

"I didn't miss him."

"Bullshit."

"We don't need to talk about this."

"Okay."

Chris stopped and just kept them on their way to Wakanda.

"So, no more kids for you and Steve?" Natasha asked.

"No, there was a complication with Gabriel's birth. They had to remove my uterus. No more kids for us."

"I'm so sorry, Chris."

"No, don't worry about it. We got Gabriel. He is happy and healthy."

"That's good."

"Yeah. I'm happy to have it just be the three of us."

"I could understand that."

"Steve, we're here." Chris said and everyone walked to the front of the ship.

"Umm, Chris. Pull up. You're going to kill us." Sam said.

"I always love this part." Chris smiled as they flew through the invisible mountain and into Wakanda.

"Wow." Sam and Rhodey said as they saw the city.

They landed, and everyone got off the jet. T'Challa and Okoye were waiting for them.

"Your majesty, Okoye, it is nice of you to greet us."

Bruce bowed and everyone looked at him.

"We don't do that here." T'Challa said to Bruce.

"How big of an assault should we expect, Captain?" T'Challa asked leading the way to the vibranium mines.

"Well," Both Chris and Steve started.

They looked at each other and everyone else stared at them in confusion.

"I was referring to Chris this time, Steve." T'Challa apologized.

"Of course. She's your captain after all." Steve said and looked to Chris to explain.

"Quite a large one. I was hoping for the Kingsguard at the least."

"You'll have the Kingsguard, the Border Tribe, the Dora Milaje, and of course…" T'Challa said.

"A semi-mentally stable 100-year-old man." Bucky smiled walking over to everyone.

"Bucky, How you been?" Steve greeted and hugged him.

"Not bad for the end of the world." Bucky smiled and then hugged Chris.

They made their way to Shuri's lab and she placed Vision on a table in order to scan him over.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Chris and Steve heard and turned to see Gabe running through the doors with his nanny behind him.

"Oh, there's my angel! Come here." Chris said and knelt down to hug Gabe.

"We missed you." Chris said with her arms tightly around him.

"Come here, buddy." Steve smiled and lifted him up.

"I missed you too." Gabe said hugging Steve.

Chris attempted to smooth down his curls, but to no prevail.

"Daddy, can we go play?" Gabe asked.

"Maybe later, Gabe. Mommy and Daddy are still working." Steve said.

"After working?"

"Yeah."

Steve kissed Gabe's head and then put him down.

"Be careful." Chris called after him as he ran away.

"Bye Uncle Bucky!"

"See ya, Kiddo." Bucky waved.

"So, Bucky's met the kid and I haven't?" Natasha whispered with a smile.

"Bucky has been here." Chris smiled back.

"The structure is polymorphic." Shuri said.

"We had to attach each neuron non-sequentially." Banner responed.

"Why didn't you program the synapses to work collectively?" Shuri asked with a smile.

"We didn't think of that."

"Shuri, play nice." Chris said with a smirk.

"Can you remove the stone?" Wanda asked.

"There are more than two trillion neurons here. It will take some time, but I can do it." Shuri nodded.

"How long?" Steve asked.

"However long you can give me."

Okoye's Kimoyo beads started ringing and a projection of Earth came up.

"Something has entered the atmosphere." Okoye said.

"Alright, everyone suit up and get ready. We need to keep the fight away from the lab." Steve said and everyone started going.

"Cap, we've got a situation outside." Sam said and they looked out the windows to see the ships falling from the sky.

"Wanda, you stay here with Shuri and Vision. As soon as the stone is out of his head you blow it to hell." Steve said and Wanda nodded.

"Let's go." Chris said and they started to head outside.

"We've got more landing outside of the dome." Rhodey said.

"We're on our way. Get to the border."

"Evacuate the city. Engage our defenses. Get this man a shield." T'Challa instructed.

Shuri started the process on Vision before walking over to her armory an getting Steve a shield. She handed Chris a new set of protective armor and a set of vibranium gloves.


	28. Chapter 28

They loaded the transports and made their way for the border.

Bruce had put on Tony's suit that he had used to take on the hulk and was learning how to control it on the way out there.

"Your majesty. I believe it is time for your suit." Chris smiled at her king.

"I believe you are right, Mrs. Rogers." T'Challa smiled and activated his suit.

"I've got heat signatures coming through the tree line." Rhodey said as he flew in.

The Avengers followed King T'Challa to the front where M'Baku and the rest of the Jabari were waiting.

"Thank you, for fighting with us." T'Challa said.

M'Baku responded in Xhosa and smiled at the other king.

Steve, T'Challa, and Chris all approached the barrier where the two of Thanos' children were testing it.

"Where's the other one?" Chris asked looking for the one she had stabbed in Scotland.

"You will pay for his life with your head." She threatened.

"I quite like my head where it is." Chris smirked.

"Thanos will have the stone."

"That won't happen." Steve replied.

"You are now in Wakanda. Thanos will have blood and dust."

"We have the blood to spare." She said and signaled to their ships.

The three walked back to everyone else and stood in line.

"I'm guessing they didn't surrender." Bucky said.

"Not really." Steve replied.

They came in waves out of the trees. Aliens with four arms and sharp claws and teeth. They ran straight into the barrier and died trying to get inside. Broke through and then would get sliced in half.

"They're killing themselves." Okoye said in disbelief.

"They're like rabid dogs." Chris said watching as the pile before the wall grew.

A few started getting through with charred limbs and began charging for the troops. The front line placed their shields and the line behind them started shooting over the shields. Chris and Bucky were among those with guns shooting at the aliens that got through. Sam and Rhodey were flying overhead shooting at them from above. Those that weren't at the barrier were began circling around the outside possibly attempting to get through the back.

"T'Challa, if these things circle the perimeter then they could get in the back. Then there's nothing between them and the stone." Chris said looking at the king.

"We need to keep them in front of us." Steve said calmly.

"How do you propose we do that?" Okoye asked.

"We will open the barrier. On my signal open North-West section seventeen." T'Challa commanded.

"This will be the end of Wakanda." M'Baku said.

"Then let it be the noblest ending in history." Okoye said and gripped her staff tighter.

"Wakanda Forever!" T'Challa yelled and everyone charged the barrier.

The barrier opened and Chris climbed up into a tree to get a good position and shoot as many of the aliens coming through as she could. Chris had Steve's back no matter what and was watching him from the tree. One of the aliens crawled up and pulled her out of the tree.

"Steve, there's too many." Chris yelled shooting and stabbing them as they tried to tear her apart.

"Chris, I'm coming!" Steve yelled but was too busy being trampled by his own aliens.

Suddenly light came down from the sky and people stopped to look. An axe came flying out and it was as if everyone caught a second wind.

Thor was alive, and he was here to help. Along with talking raccoon and tree. He took care of all the aliens covering people.

"You guys are so screwed now!" Bruce laughed.

"Bring me Thanos!" Thor yelled and came down using his lightning to knock out all the aliens surrounding him.

"Chris." Steve said and ran over to her.

"I'm okay." Chris said and stood up.

Chris got the chance to reload all of her guns and then nodded to Steve that she was ready. They got back into the fight.

"Wanda, we're gonna need some help." Chris said and the five death wheels came up.

"Coming."

"Chris, someone is up here." Shuri said.

"Gabe." Chris said and started going towards the tower.

"Get to Vision." Steve said.

"But Gabe."

"Vision fell from the tower. They're after Vision, not Gabe. Shuri will keep Gabe safe." Steve said.

Chris groaned and headed for the forest where Bruce was already.

"Guys, vision needs back up. Now!" Bruce yelled.

"I'm here." Chris yelled as she came over the rocks and kicked the other alien in the face.

"Come on, asshole. I'm an angry mother so don't mess with me." Chris said pulling out her staff.

He charged Chris and she smiled eavily as she flipped and jumped and blocked.

"If you hurt my son, I will slowly peel you apart one layer at a time until you beg for death."

He lashed back and pinned Chris to the ground. Chris was slowly running out of oxygen. The man's spear was pushed through his chest and he was lifted off Chris. Vision dropped the man and let out a heavy breath.

"Vision, we need to get you back to the lab so Shuri can finish." Chris said and helped him up.

Wanda came over to them and helped Chris with Vision.

"Are you okay?" She asked him.

The stone began glowing and Vision grimaced.

"Vision?" Chris asked.

"He's coming." Vision said looking between the two of them.

"Wanda, look at me. You need to destroy the stone. Now." Chris said looking her in they eye.

"What? No!"

"Wanda! Yes!"

"Would you kill Steve?"

"If it meant saving the universe. He would make me."

"Cap, that's him." Banner said.

"Chris." Steve said.

They all faced him and attempted to charge him. Everyone was batted aside or thrown back. Chris was wrapped in a tree. There was a blast as Wanda destroyed the stone and Vision. Thanos walked towards Vision and used the time stone to reverse what Wanda had done and brought back the stone. He removed it from Vision's head and placed it in his gauntlet. Thor blasted him back and sunk his axe into his chest.

"I told you that you'd die for that." Thor said and pushed it deeper.

"Next time, go for the head." Thanos said and snapped his fingers.

The gauntlet broke and Thanos vanished.

"Where did he go?" Steve asked Thor.

"Steve." Chris said and he broke the branches holding her to the tree.

"Steve." Bucky also said getting his attention as he turned to dust.

"Bucky." Steve said falling to his knees.


	29. Chapter 29

People were turning to dust in front of everyone's eyes. Bucky, Groot, T'Challa, Wanda, Sam. Chris clung to Steve to make sure that he didn't fade away like the others.

"Gabe," Chris said and looked at Steve.

They both started running towards the tower together. They climbed the stairs as quickly as they could and ran into the lab.

"Shuri." Chris said running over to her as she kneeled on the ground.

"He's gone. I don't know what happened. He just faded away." Shuri said and looked around in confusion.

"No." Chris said and fell to her knees.

"I'm sorry, Chris." Shuri said.

Chris didn't say anything. She sat there and cried as she stared at the floor. Steve knelt behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"No, no. Not my baby." Chris cried and leaned back into Steve. They cried together in each other's arms.

Shuri wanted to comfort them but didn't know how to. They were devastated. Sobbing into each other's arms.

A few days had passed, and Natasha was taking care of Steve and Chris. Chris had locked herself away in their bedroom and just laid in their bed. Steve would come out and grab water and food and try to take it to Chris, but she refused to eat or drink. Steve ate small meals and then slept with Chris. Chris didn't speak or sleep or anything. Steve would sometimes get her to drink a little bit of water, but to no avail. Natasha spent her time cooking and cleaning for them. Whenever Steve wasn't in their room he was in Gabe's room. He would sit on the bed and hold his teddy bear or grab his blanket.

It was heartbreaking. Losing a child all because you couldn't stop one man from wiping out half of the universe. Half of your world.

Shuri was running what was left of Wakanda. She spent every second she could in the lab with Bruce trying to find someway to reverse what had happened. Some way to bring everyone back.

Steve began to panic when Chris wasn't in their room. He looked all over and finaly found her in Gabe's room. She was sitting on the bed with Gabe's teddy in her arms.

"Chris, we need to do something." Steve said sitting on the bed next to her.

She didn't look at him. She just sat there staring out the window.

"What?" Chris asked. "What can we possibly do?"

"Well, you should eat something. Maybe take a shower."

"Gabe is gone. I can't keep going like nothing ever happened." Chris said finally looking at him.

"I'm not saying that. I'm saying we need to find a way to bring them back. We need to find Thanos, get the infinity stones and get them back. Get our son back."

"You don't get it, Steve."

"I don't get it? I lost him too, Chris! He was my son too! We both loved him! He was our angel! Do not act like I am not hurting from this. I am broken, and my wife has completely shut me out in this time when we need each other. We need to lean on each other right now. I need my wife!"

Chris was rattled. All this time she had only been thinking about herself, but she had not thought about her husband. The father of the child that they had both lost.

"I'm sorry." Chris said quietly.

"We both lost him." Steve said.

"I just want him back." Chris said and hugged him.

"I know, so let's do everything we can to get him back." Steve said in her ear.

Chris nodded and clung to him tighter as he hugged her back. Tears began to fall from his eyes.

"I love you, baby." Steve said to her.

"I love you." Chris said and kissed him.

Steve and Chris laid down on Gabe's bed and held each other.


End file.
